A Simple Journey
by The Young Detective
Summary: When Ash Ketchum sets out on a journey and becomes late to get a starter, he ends up with a little Mareep. What would come out of it?
1. Chapter 1

**This is my new story I am starting in the New Year. I have started this new story after stopping my older ones. This is after a lot of soul searching and I have decided to make this my best. I shall also make sure to complete this story properly.  
**

**All your continuous support is expected. Read and Review.**

* * *

A Simple Journey

Chapter One-The Adventure Begins

"No! Switch out Nidorino quickly!" exclaimed a young boy as he watched in the television, a battle raging between two creatures.

These creatures were extremely resilient, strong willed and capable of using and manipulating the natural forces to their will. They could be captured in small spherical contraptions. Since the balls could be carried inside pockets, the monsters came to be known as Pocket Monsters or Pokémon for short while the spheres themselves used to capture the Pokémon started to be known as Poke balls.

Pokémon were captured and trained by humans all over the world to do various jobs. But these amazing creatures were known for something else-the ability to combat each other. The high resistance and incredible healing rate of the Pokémon helped in it. This gave way for the sport of Pokémon battling.

Competitions were held to battle different teams between each other and test them out. The Pokémon League, an organization that was created to maintain peace and rule the different regions held such competitions. Each region recognized by the League had four strong trainers known as Elite Four and a Champion to head them for the administration.

Currently, the boy sat in front of the television, eyes glued to the machine so as to not miss any minute detail. One of the Pokémon was a small quadruped dinosaur with sharp spikes on the spine and a long horn on the head. Its body was a pinkish purple. The small Pokémon's horn leaked beads of poison as it charged at the enemy. It was a Nidorino, a Poison Type Pokémon.

The opponent on the other hand was blackish purple colored and was floating in the air. Its face held a perpetual grin and its body wavered into nothing as Nidorino rammed into him.

The ghost laughed eerily appearing behind Nidorino. It created a dark ball of energy between its humanoid hands and hurled at the opposing Poison type. The ghost, Gengar grinned as his attack struck but frowned on seeing a green dome of protective energy around Nidorino.

Clapping its hands, Gengar released strange rays of energy at Nidorino. On being struck, the dinosaur's eyes drooped slightly and it fell asleep.

"Ash Ketchum! You must be in your bed now." A lady in her early thirties shouted at the raven haired boy. She wore a pink blouse and blue skirt. A green apron hung from her neck. The lady's brown hairs were tied into a ponytail. Her eyes were narrowed at Ash.

The boy visibly paled and gave her a pleading look, "Mom, can I just watch this battle before I go to sleep?"

"Ash!" his mother called out threateningly, "You don't want to be late at Professor Oak's to get your first Pokémon, do you? Now go to your bed. I need you at the dining table at eight."

Ash's mother switched off the television and led Ash to his bed. She covered her son with a bed sheet and smiled fondly, "Good night sweetie. Enjoy your last sleep before the journey. Everything will change tomorrow." She walked away after tucking him in and closed the door slowly behind her.

Ash smiled as he thought about the next day. It was the day he would receive his first Pokémon. Every month, starting Pokémon were given away to children who turned ten in the previous month. The kids had to apply for it once they reach the age of ten. Different people authorized in various towns and cities were the ones who gave away Pokémon to the applicants.

Professor Samuel Oak, a world famous researcher and a former champion of the Kanto League was the person authorized at Pallet Town to distribute starter Pokémon to youngsters. He was also a caretaker of many Pokémon owned by the trainers he sponsored.

Ash had turned ten just a few weeks ago. He had applied with Professor Oak for a Pokémon right on his birthday. He had to attend a mandatory test to be selected for getting the Pokémon. Thanks to his mother being an assistant of Professor Oak in her youth, the kind researcher had let Ash to enter his premises whenever he wished. This enabled Ash to meet many different Pokémon and learn about them.

Using the knowledge he had gained from his frequent visits to the Oak's ranch and his occasional talks with the professor, Ash passed the test quite easily. Now he just had to receive a Pokémon.

Ash had been weighing the pros and cons of the three standard starter Pokémon for months now. All the three, Bulbasaur-a Grass type, Charmander-a Fire type and Squirtle-a Water type were bred on a large scale for this purpose and tamed properly before being handed over to starting trainers.

Ash always had a fascination for Charizard, the final evolution of Charmander. The monster was a pseudo-Dragon in looks as well as power and temper. He had also seen many famous trainers like the Kanto Champion Lance use Charizard. This just fueled his liking for the species.

"I guess I'll take a Charmander." Ash muttered weakly as he slipped into deep slumber.

* * *

As planned, Ash was ready to head out early. He wore a white shirt, a blue jean and a red hooded jacket. His palms were covered with fingerless red gloves. He didn't mind combing his unstable hairs and instead decided to wear a red and white cap while his feet were adorned by white running shoes.

Just as Ash finished his meal and got up to head out, Delia, his mother stepped in front of him, "You'll be on your own now Ash. Please make sure to be safe. I hope you can come back once in a while."

Ash took a deep breath and hugged his mother lightly, "I'll come back whenever possible mom. And I promise to be safe. I'll miss you a lot."

"I love you."

"I love you too", leaving his teary eyed mother, Ash walked out of the house carrying his backpack.

He had took with him spare clothes, medicines, dried food, water, a journal, map, a folding plastic tent, a few utensils, matchbox, rope and lastly a knife. The pack was quite heavy but Ash had gotten used to such strains while working for his mother's restaurant.

He also helped Prof. Oak in many odd jobs. While he wasn't too huge, his height of 4'7" and lean body was quite impressive for a ten year old. His constant working had enabled him to stay in good shape.

Carrying the backpack with ease, Ash walked towards Prof Oak's lab. A few people he met on the way waved at him and wished him luck on his journey. Expressing his gratitude to each one of them, Ash moved ahead. The town was so small that almost every resident knew the others.

Within no time, Ash reached the large white building. It was a simple structure consisting of the laboratory, a library, nursery and the Professor's house. Behind the building was a huge facility that stretched a long way. The area was separated into many sections where over five hundred Pokémon lived.

Ash shook himself out of the thoughts and climbed the steps in front of the lab and slowly pushed the door. As he entered, a lab assistant walked out of a room to the right of the passageway.

"Oh hi Ash!" the young lady greeted him cheerfully, "Here to get your first Pokémon?"

Ash nodded, "Hi Julie. Is the professor in the lab?"

"Yeah. You better hurry." Julie motioned towards the room she exited from.

Waving lightly, Ash breezed past her and entered the room. There he saw someone he never expected or wished to see. With a scowl on his face, stood a boy of his age. He wore a dark blue full sleeved t-shirt with brown jeans. His neck was adorned by a chain that held a yin-yang locket.

Beside the youngster stood the man Ash had come to meet. He was old but his sharp and calculating eyes revealed an inner strength. His face held a kind smile at Ash. Professor Oak wore a red shirt, brown trousers and a white lab coat.

Snorting at Ash, the boy, Gary, gave an arrogant pose, "Heh. It seems the loser is here. Well anyways, I got the last and the best Pokémon. Now you won't have any to pick from. It is nice to have a relative in the Pokémon business."

As Ash directed a worried gaze at the Professor, he snapped, "Enough. You have received your starter and your starting kit. Now head out."

"I'll be waiting outside to beat you Ashy-boy." Gary grinned maliciously as he walked out.

The professor sighed, "I'm sorry Ash. My grandson tends to be too arrogant. I hope you understand."

Ash looked at Prof. Oak nervously, "Gary said he got the last Pokémon. Does that mean I don't get a Pokémon?"

The professor sighed, "Well you see Ash, I only had three of the standard starters and there were four starting trainers. As you know, it is first come first serve and…"

"…and all the Pokémon were picked by others who arrived before me. Even though I came early, I don't get a Pokémon." Ash completed sadly.

"I didn't mean that. I still have a Pokémon with me that I can give you." Professor Oak corrected hastily.

Ash's face snapped up in joy, "Really? Where is it? I shall accept it, whatever it may be." He was desperate to have any Pokémon now.

"Alright just wait for a few minutes while I procure your starter." The professor smiled and walked into another room which Ash recognized as the nursery.

After five minutes of nervous waiting, Ash's eyes widened as he saw the old professor come out. In his right hand was a Poke ball with a yellow sticker on it. On closer inspection, it was revealed to be a lightning bolt.

'Is it a Pikachu?' Ash wondered. He had heard that many years ago, Professor Oak had given away an incredibly powerful Pikachu to a trainer called Red. The trainer was now a legend, almost a myth. He was said to be the strongest in the whole world. But he was never seen by anyone now. Hiding his powers and honing his skills continuously, Red was said to be in secret training.

'Am I getting the same?' mused Ash.

Ash took the Poke ball from Oak with shaking hands and slowly clicked the release button. In a blinding white flash, the creature inside was released. As the white energy dispersed, the Pokémon was revealed.

It was a quadruped creature with blue face and legs standing at around two and a half feet. Its back was covered in yellow fleece. A curly tuft of wool adorned its head. The Pokémon's ears and tail were conical and striped in yellow and black. The tail ended in an orange sphere which resembled a light bulb.

Raising its head, the small Pokémon looked around nervously. Ash looked at it with a huge grin on his face, "A Mareep. It looks so cute!"

The Mareep blinked at the boy nervously. On remembering that they were one of the shy species, Ash crouched down near the Electric type and extended his palm. 'May be if I seem smaller, it will warm up.' He thought. "Hey Mareep. I am Ash Ketchum. Wanna be friends with me?"

Walking forward cautiously, the Mareep sniffed his palm. On realizing that he meant no harm, it relaxed. It cooed in pleasure and nuzzled into Ash's palm. Ash noticed that Mareep was slightly taller than then the ones he had seen before.

"How much better is this than the common ones of its species?" Ash enquired on seeing that Mareep was quite healthy and shiny. Its wool was clear and its body was lean.

Oak smiled, "This is one of the best breeds you can ever see. Our studies say that its father is an Arcanine and as such, it will turn out to be quite fast. Moreover, it was not a human set-up breed in a breeding centre. The abandoned egg was collected from the innermost wilderness in Johto. When I contacted one of my colleagues to get me some electric types for a project, he sent me a bunch which included two Mareep. So I decided to give you this one."

Ash started petting Mareep slowly making sure not to touch the wool. He knew it might shock him accidentally due to the static electricity stored in the wool. Prof. Oak cleared his throat getting Ash's attention and made him recall the starter.

"Now Ash, here is your Pokédex with five spare Poke balls." The professor took out a red colored rectangular device from his pocket and handed over to Ash along with spare contraptions to capture Pokémon, "This Pokédex will act as your identification and as an encyclopedia on literally everything that man knows about Pokémon. It can also be used as a GPS system and for texting. It uses satellites to access the internet too. I have filled out your identification and the details you provided. You must memorize the trainer ID number in the Pokédex."

"Thanks a lot professor. I'll go out now. I don't want to be behind Gary." Ash bowed to his promoter and then headed out.

* * *

"Alright everyone. Watch me knock out this loser and start my glorious career of a Pokémon Master." Gary smirked as he spoke to the crowd gathered outside the lab.

Ash rolled his eyes and walked down the steps. He knew a battle was inevitable but also knew that he had the type advantage. Gary had been bragging about selecting a Squirtle since two years now.

Smiling, Ash scanned the Poke ball that contained his Mareep.

_Mareep. The Wool Pokémon. Mareep tend to be shy and calm but can attack viciously if in danger. Its wool stores air and electricity which keeps it warm in winter and cool in summer._

_This specimen is Male and has the Ability Static. Static enables the wielder to paralyze opponents who make physical contact._

_Mareep knows the moves Tackle, Growl, Thunder Wave, Thunder Shock, Odor Sleuth and Agility._

_Note:- Odor Sleuth and Agility are egg moves inherited from Male parent._

With his arrogant smirk, Gary moved the crowd making them stand in a circle. He then released his starter Squirtle.

Squirtle was a light blue turtle with a brown shell on its back. Its limbs and curly tail were able to be retracted into the shell.

Smiling warmly, Ash released his Mareep. Gary visibly paled at this. He hadn't thought of such a possibility before. But then he got his smirk back.

"What do I see here? The loser doesn't even get a real starter?" Gary teased, "I don't think that runt can beat Squirtle even with a type advantage."

The Electric type gave a deep growl at the young boy and moved to the centre where Squirtle had reached by now. His wools started sparking wildly and the sphere on his tail got brighter, his earlier timid and shy behavior completely disappeared.

Ash gave Mareep an amazed look and then smirked, "Start off with Agility. Circle around Squirtle."

"That runt knows Agility? We need to stop it. Use Bubble attack at his feet."

As Mareep started rushing forward, Squirtle took a deep breath and started blowing crystal clear bubbles at the opponent. Mareep jumped over the bubbles skillfully and sneaked behind Squirtle.

"Withdraw!" Gary shouted. He knew that Mareep's attack would mean a lot of pain for his starter but he wanted to minimize the effects.

"Thunder Wave."

Mareep growled again as he neared Squirtle. His wool crackled and blue sparks flew at Squirtle, effectively paralyzing him. Gary held back curses and called out again, "Tackle it"

Squirtle threw his whole body at Mareep who was standing nearby. As Mareep lost his footing, Gary shouted, "Now Water Gun."

Squirtle spat a steady stream of water at Mareep who simply grinned. This time, stronger sparks flew and connected with the Water Gun. Riding the water, the electricity rapidly slammed into Squirtle.

As the attacks stopped, Squirtle was revealed, charred completely and badly paralyzed while Mareep was just a bit tired.

* * *

Ash now stood in one of the grassy fields between Pallet Town and Viridian City. He was planning to capture a Flying type Pokémon but had no luck finding one till now. Ash knew that he could easily get hold of a Pidgey or a Fearow during day time and a Hoothoot or Murkrow at night.

But he was searching for something else. He was searching for the migrating flock that consisted of many exotic Flying types like Starly and Tailow. He knew it was the season for the Starly and their evolutions to migrate and that he could find one of them.

Mareep was walking beside Ash looking all around for the Pokémon his trainer had shown in the Pokédex. They were just entering the small forest area before Viridian City.

Suddenly, Ash heard a screech of pain. As he looked ahead, he saw what he was searching for- a Starly. The small bird was grayish brown in color. Its beak and talons were light orange and its feathers and face had white parts. It was trying to fly away. The small bird was being attacked by a few other Flying types Ash recognized as Spearow.

"Thunder Shock!" Ash barked as he ran forward to save the poor Starly. Mareep released strong bolts of electricity which zapped the Spearow and knocked out a few of them. Ash quickly picked up the fallen Starly and started moving ahead.

"Come on Mareep. We need to get Starly healed as soon as possible. It is in rough shape" Ash called out to his starter who immediately started to follow Ash.

Ash felt his arms being bruised and cut as he ran through the forest. The branches and roots of the various trees and the rocky, uneven land made his steps waver. He was having difficulties in running but kept up somehow. Suddenly, he heard many more screeches behind him. He turned momentarily and to his horror, numerous Spearow were following him led by a massive Fearow.

Ash gasped and dashed off again. Mareep was having difficulty in keeping up but used Agility to maintain his speed. Also, being small let him evade the branches and roots easily.

Ash knew that Spearow and Fearow were quite formidable as a group and were tough to break. They were hot-headed and territorial, attacking any trespassers without hesitation.

Slowly, the birds gained speed and caught up with the small trainer and started attacking him with their sharp talons and beaks. Ash cried out in pain on his flesh being torn by the vicious predators.

Mareep growled angrily and released Thunder Shocks one after another. Many Spearow fell down knocked out by the angry Electric type's attack. The huge Fearow easily maneuvered out of the attacks and hit Mareep with its wings knocking him out.

Ash immediately recalled Mareep and ran again. But due to the pain and slight blood loss, he was unfocused and tripped. He skidded on the ground and fell down. Ash's head hit the ground hard. His arms were completely bruised and bleeding. But he never let go of the Starly he was holding. Ash covered the little bird with his arms and lay there awaiting his inevitable loss.

Ash could see the Fearow glaring at him with hatred and lunging for the kill. Just as he closed his eyes in anticipation of the death blow, he heard a rough voice behind him.

"Thunderbolt!"

A truly massive wave of electricity sped past Ash and hit the Flying types. The smell of ozone spread in the area. As if in sync with the attack, the sky rumbled and black clouds formed. Lightning flared high above Ash's head and struck the Pokémon that stood behind him.

The huge humanoid Electric type grinned and moved between Ash and the Fearow. The evolved bird had used a Protect to escape from the Thunderbolt.

Ash opened his eyes slowly and saw the yellow and black striped Pokémon waving its strange wires and crackling furiously.

'An Electivire?! Where did it come from?'

As if on cue, a man walked forward, "Fearow, surrender and come with us or we'll have to take you away by force. You have done far too harms to be left free."

The fully evolved Flying type cawed venomously and rushed at the man. Its body was engulfed in a purple and golden energy.

The man didn't move a bit. The Fearow was intercepted by Electivire who quickly wrapped it with his wires. "Finish him off." The man commanded coldly.

The whole world seemed to explode in front of Ash as Electivire unleashed his fury. The blinding electric attack made his hairs stand up and the air was filled with the smell of ozone once again.

Then, everything went black.

* * *

Pain. That was all Ash remembered. As he opened his eyes, Ash found himself in a strange environment. He was wearing white dress and was laid on a bed covered in white sheets. Most of the things like walls and door were white.

'Am I dead? Is this heaven?' Ash wondered. Then he noticed his backpack kept securely on a chair. Nearby, a table was situated on which were two Poke balls. One was simple while the other was decorated with a lightning bolt sticker. Realization flashed through Ash's mind and he tried getting up.

But a gruff growl and a huge arm on his shoulder stopped him from moving. Ash turned his head slowly to look who had stopped him and recoiled on seeing a massive Electivire. The Thunderbolt Pokémon shook his head slowly to indicate him not to move. The huge Pokémon helped him sit up and arranged a pillow for him to lean on. Ash obeyed the intimidating creature without any protest.

Electivire left Ash in the room and walked out only to return shortly with a young man. He was no more than twenty five. His silver hairs were combed shapely. His attire was simple consisting of a sky blue full sleeve shirt and black pencil bottom trousers. His boots created a rhythmic voice as he walked.

The man pulled a chair and sat down on it and then smiled at Ash, "Hello Ash. I'm Jonathan, a Pokémon trainer. I was the one who saw you in the forest."

Ash tried talking but found that his throat was dry and voice raspy. He coughed a few times. Jonathan motioned to his Electivire who immediately produced a bottle of water for Ash. The boy quickly emptied the contents of the bottle greedily. Then he spoke, "Thanks for saving me. But how did you know my name?"

"We had to get your name to register you in the hospital. So we searched your possessions and got your Pokédex. By the way, Electivire…" he pointed at his friend, "…is my partner and he was the one who knocked out that Fearow. It would have killed you."

Ash nodded thankfully at the massive Pokémon. He shivered as he was reminded of the horrible encounter with the blood thirsty bird. Then he remembered, "How is Mareep? And what about that Starly?"

Jonathan picked the two Poke balls from the table and handed them over to Ash, "They are both healthy. And well, I caught that Starly for you. She agreed to join your team since you saved her."

"How long did it take me to regain consciousness?" Ash enquired in his still shaky voice. He was coughing in between.

"Two days. Mareep was okay within a few hours. Starly took few more." Jonathan explained, "Get acquainted with them. We're leaving you right now. Once you are released tomorrow, come and meet me at the Pokémon Centre. Ask for Jonathan Fleets."

Jonathan soon left with his Electivire. Ash raised his Poke balls and released his Pokémon onto the bed. They weren't too huge so it was ok. Mareep immediately lunged at Ash and nuzzled his face. Starly perched in front of Ash on the bed silently looking at the boy with curious eyes.

Ash smiled at the little bird and extended his hand. The Flying type immediately flew onto the arm and settled comfortably. She cooed at the trainer and nipped his hand.

"I'm Ash. I was told you want to come with me. Is it true?" Ash got an immediate nod as his answer.

Ash spent the rest of the day talking to his two friends.

* * *

Ash stood in front of the Viridian City Pokémon Centre with Jonathan. He had bandages on his arms, a scar running from his right temple to his right cheek and a few other marks indicating his rough adventure. He had contacted his mother and informed his mother about his progress. She was worried about him. After telling her that he would head out soon, Ash had come to meet Jonathan.

Mareep was leaping and playing with a strange blue Pokémon Jonathan had brought. 'It is a Shinx' Ash recalled. The two Electric types were happy in each other's company and were playing since long. The two seemed to be on a sugar rush as they didn't even feel tired. Starly was fluttering around the area with another of Jonathan's Pokémon, a yellow and white squirrel that could fly-an Emolga. Ash had noticed that Jonathan trained Electric types majorly.

"Well, for the great deed you did by saving that little girl and taking her in your team, I helped your Mareep learn two nice moves." Jonathan smiled, "I could not leave you unrewarded."

Ash widened his eyes, "Really? Which are those?"

The Electric trainer grinned at this, "Check it yourself. Those moves are really useful and Mareep or their evolutions don't learn them naturally. So I told Electivire to teach him."

"Wow. Thanks a lot. I shall make sure to check and make good use of them." Ash grinned at the elder man and raised his clenched fist in excitement.

The elder trainer smiled and waved at Ash, "Alright. Try to stay safe and away from danger."

"Well, no promises. But I'll try." Ash grinned.

Jonathan gave a sharp whistle and started walking towards Pallet Town. Shinx and Emolga bid their farewell and immediately followed the trainer.

Ash smiled and turned around. Mareep walked with him eagerly and Starly hovered ahead of him.

After entering the Viridian Forest, Ash started searching for a good place to train. He wanted it to be quiet, empty and hospitable. At last, in the innermost part of the forest, he found a strange rocky outcropping and a few huge boulders. On closer inspection, Ash noticed that the boulders were used cleverly to hide a small cave.

'A cave in a forest with no rocky formations?! This is strange.' He thought and slowly entered the cave. The formation that he had thought to be a cave was instead a short tunnel. Ash had to bend a bit to move easily through the tunnel.

He walked for at least ten minutes through the tunnel and then saw light. Ash discovered that it lead to another part of the forest. Opening his pack, Ash pulled out his map and tried locating his position but in vain.

'How come there is no mention of the tunnel or this part of the forest? Someone must have hidden the cave using those boulders or maybe these parts are not known to any humans.' Ash mused.

Mareep sniffed around the area while Starly had perched herself on a huge tree nearby. Ash had planned a training schedule for his Pokémon while he was at the hospital. He had learned that the Indigo League Conference required the contestants to procure eight badges given away by Pokémon Gyms all over the region.

There were over twenty five different gyms all over the Kanto region. Any eight badges of them were accepted. But Ash had other plans. There were eight special Gyms, the first eight gyms to be established in the world. These eight were from the start of organized Pokémon battling.

Other than that, these eight gyms were notoriously hard when compared to the minor gyms. And these days, almost no one managed to get badges from all eight of these gyms. Ash wanted to beat these gyms and secure his position in the conference.

For that, he wanted to have a powerful team with properly trained members. Mareep and Starly had already agreed to help him. Now he wanted to train both of them as the first gym which was located at Pewter City specialized in Rock types. Starly was weak against Rock types and Mareep would have trouble since many Rock types tended to have Ground as sub type or at least Ground type moves.

Ground types were immune to electricity and were also super effective against Electric types. So they had to train hard. Ash quickly took out his Pokédex and scanned Mareep to learn about his new moves.

Ash was quite surprised when the device told him about Thunderbolt and Iron Tail. "Wow. You can use Iron Tail now Mareep?"

On getting a happy growl and a nod, Ash looked around for a target. He spotted a boulder around three times as Mareep and ordered, "Alright. Use Iron Tail on that boulder."

The little lamb growled and started running at the boulder. Leaping to a height of two feet, he twirled around, striking his metallic tail on the boulder. A few cracks formed around the place where Mareep had hit.

"I see. Now use Thunderbolt."

A larger electric current than before flew at the boulder and impacted hard. More cracks appeared than while Iron Tail was used.

Ash grinned, "That's really useful buddy. Now we need to train you strength to match that of the Gym Leader."

Ash started training his Pokémon from then on. The two had to run and fly around respectively while carrying small weights. Starly had weights tied to her wings while Mareep got them on his tail.

Ash also made the two of them use their attacks repeatedly to strengthen the moves. The two were making progress slowly. Ash wasn't slacking either. He was working out with his team as he wanted to avoid any unfortunate incidents like the last one or at least be prepared.

* * *

Ash was training for the seventh day at the secret spot he had found. He had decided to move out and ahead soon. His team had grown leaps and bounds in the last week. He knew Mareep would evolve within a week or two. The place had many trees that were rich in edible berries, some apples and in the forest, there was a clear stream.

Due to these reasons, Ash had camped inside the tunnel which was quite comfortable. The proximity with the nature and the harsh training had impacted them positively. He was going to head out after the current training. As he was finishing up his last session of training at the place, Mareep and Starly stopped and were listening to something intently.

Ash frowned at this but froze when he heard heavy footsteps inside the tunnel. He recognized that someone or something was walking at them. The movement was slow yet steady and powerful. After a few minutes of tense waiting, a bipedal creature exited the tunnel.

It was a strange beetle with deep blue exoskeleton. The Pokémon had stubby feet with single claws, strong arms with sharp protrusions on the wrist, beady yellow eyes, wings on the back and a long horn that clearly spoke of one thing-strength.

Ash frowned, 'A Heracross! What is it doing here? They are native to Johto.'

The Bug type growled at Ash and his friends. Mareep growled back and Starly hovered in front of Ash protectively.

"Look, we just came here by chance. We were only training here. We did not intend to disturb you or the place." Ash tried reasoning.

On hearing about training, the Heracross growled in a low voice and motioned at Ash in a challenging manner. Ash widened his eyes. He knew that Heracross were quite strong. So he tried a new idea, "Will you join my team if I am able to defeat you?"

After a few moments of pondering, the part Fighting type nodded rigidly.

Grinning, Ash moved back with Mareep, "Starly, start off with Quick Attack."

As the little bird darted off at top speed, Heracross waved his arms wildly. Dust and mud coalesced around the arms into small rocks and flew at Starly.

"Dodge them and move into Feather Dance." Ash shouted in worry as he stared at the opponent in awe, 'It is a rare breed if it knows Rock Blast. Wonder how it got here in Kanto.'

Starly dodged the rocks with precision and moved over the bug. Rubbing her wings, she released a lot of feathers onto Heracross who was annoyed at the distraction. Angry at the irritating feathers, Heracross spat glowing seeds all around it and then leapt into the air.

White streaks of air shone around Heracross as it slammed into Starly with precision. The bird cried out in pain.

Taking advantage, Heracross used Rock Blast again. "Use Roost quickly."

Starly steadied herself in the air and then swept down. Righting and adjusting her wings, she sat on the ground resting. This enabled her to evade the stones which simply flew over her head.

"Now Quick Attack into Wing Attack. Don't hold back."

Within the bat of an eye, Starly reached in front of Heracross and slammed her wings into Heracross furiously.

As Heracross groaned, Ash shouted with glee, "End it with Steel Wing."

Starly's wings hardened into metallic structure and a clang was heard as the wing impacted Heracross' exoskeleton.

The Bug type fell down knocked out and unconscious. Ash quickly pulled out a Poke ball and hurled it at Heracross. The beetle was sucked into the contraption as scarlet energy. The ball immediately clicked indicating a successful capture.

* * *

Ash now stood in front of the Pewter City Gym. It took him a total of three days to reach the city. He had trained daily inside the forest and also found out how Heracross ended up there.

A Bug type specialist who called himself as Samurai challenged Ash and on being defeated, enquired whether he saw any Heracross. He also explained that there were a few Heracross supposedly released in the forest by the Pokémon League. They wanted to make Pokémon of other regions familiar in Kanto.

Ash shook his head to shove away the thoughts and then pushed the door of the Gym and slowly entered inside. The whole place was filled in darkness.

"Who goes there?" a voice boomed.

Ash took a deep breath and shouted back, "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. I'm here to challenge the Gym Leader."

Suddenly, all the lights flickered on and revealed a young man standing on the opposite side. The tan boy had squinted eyes. Between the two, there was a large battlefield and a referee stood beside the field.

The battlefield was made of mud and rocks. Four lines on the sides creating a rectangle indicated the sidelines. A centre line and a circle indicating the exact middle of the battlefield was also drawn.

"I'm Brock, the Gym Leader. Gym Battles are different from normal battles. This will be a two-on-two battle. Only you can substitute Pokémon. Is it clear?" the man shouted again.

Ash nodded resolutely and released Mareep onto the field. In return, Brock hurled his Poke ball and out came a small blue rock with small brown legs, a circular yellow eye and a brown rocky tuft on the head.

Ash tried scanning the Pokémon with his Pokédex.

_Roggenrola. The Mantle Pokémon. _

_No more data available. For more information, get an upgrade from your Pokédex supplier._

"It is a Rock type Pokémon native to the far away region of Unova." Brock supplied with a smirk.

The referee raised his hands, "Begin."

"Rock Blast." Brock commanded sharply.

"Dodge and move ahead with Agility." Ash grinned. He knew that Mareep's speed would be crucial in the battle. While Mareep and its evolutions were not known for high speed, Ash's Mareep was a completely different case. It inherited speed from parents and was also trained in the speed department.

The electric type leapt and maneuvered between the huge rocks hurled at him and neared the Roggenrola.

"Mud Slap." Brock sniffed. He realized that the opponent was fast and decided to play it safe by using super effective moves.

"Block it with Cotton Spore. Then use Charge." Ash grinned. He loved this idea. To distract the opponent and either attack or prepare for more.

Roggenrola's legs swept up wet mud from the field. Mareep growled and his wool was released and hurled towards the mud. The bunch of fleece intercepted the mud and headed towards the Rock type. As the Unova native Pokémon was covered in the annoying wool, Mareep was engulfed in an orb of static energy.

As Mareep absorbed electricity from the air, Ash smirked, "Hit it with Thunderbolt."

A strong pulse of electric current flew through the air and impacted on Roggenrola. The poor Rock type took the attack in close range and cried in pain. As the arcs of thunder continued to crackle, Roggenrola started glowing a bright white.

Mareep immediately stopped attacking. It was a universal rule for Pokémon. They would never attack while the process of evolution was in progress. As the light subsided, a totally new Pokémon was revealed.

It was still blue but had an array of red crystals on its back and front and a spine protruding from between its yellow ears. It looked like a small rock with two pointy arms.

"Alright Boldore, Smack Down." Brock yelled happily.

A small chunk of earth was torn apart and hurled at Mareep who was knocked back to its side.

"Now Rock Blast again."

"Blast back those rocks with Thunderbolt." Ash snarled.

Brock gasped. While he knew that Boldore couldn't take such strong special attacks, it was still a surprise to be beaten by a small Mareep. He gritted his teeth and recalled his fallen Pokémon.

"Boldore is unable to battle. Challenger wins the round. Gym Leader, please call out your last Pokémon." The referee announced

Brock hurled his next Poke ball and Ash waited expectantly.

From the ball came out a huge twenty feet long snake made up of rock. Mareep bleated in confusion and stared up at the massive Onix defiantly.

On receiving the referee's signal, Brock ordered quickly, "Slam."

Despite its massive bulk and weight, Onix was not very slow. It rocketed towards Mareep with its head ready to ram onto the opponent.

"Cotton Spore."

Brock frowned, 'Electric attacks won't work on Onix.'

As the earlier process was repeated, Ash grinned, "Now, Iron Tail to its head."

A huge whine of metal rubbing on stone was heard as Mareep toyed with his opponent.

Brock gasped, "Screech. Then Dig."

Onix roared his fury and then released a horrible wave of sound. Mareep was thrown back with full force and hit the ground hard. Ash noticed that Onix had disappeared. The massive Rock Snake erupted from the ground below Mareep hitting him on his stomach. It swept its tail and knocked Mareep over to Ash.

The small Electric type was bruised a bit and had swirls in his eyes indicating that he was unconscious.

The Pallet native recalled his starter, "It is ok Mareep. You did a very good job in beating Boldore and weakening Onix."

He took a deep breath and called out his last Pokémon. Heracross appeared with a small screech and stomped the ground.

"Onix, Rock Slide."

The Rock Snake slammed its tail on the ground. Many rocks were torn from the earth and hurled at the beetle.

"Rock Blast to block them. Use Arm Thrust on any that near you." Ash narrowed his eyes.

Brock widened his eyes as Heracross produced huge chunks of stones out of the air. After executing the told combination to stop the Rock Slide, Heracross stomped the ground making it tremble a bit.

Brock sighed, "Dig."

As the Rock type disappeared below the ground, Ash waited patiently. Just as he saw a few rocks move, he grinned, "Fly up and use Bullet Seed."

Heracross spread his wings and hovered in the air avoiding Onix's attack and then spat glowing seeds as the opponent came out.

Onix roared in agony as his body was wracked pith pain on being hit by the super effective move.

Ash had noticed a rather large stone section on Onix's tail and pointed at it, "Use Arm Thrust on the stone that supports its weight."

Heracross flew at the opponent and struck the round and smooth rock with his arms. Each of his jabs elicited cries from Onix. After four hits, the Rock Snake fell down with swirls in its eyes.

The referee raised his hand, "Onix is unable to battle. Challenger Ash Ketchum wins the match."

* * *

**How is the new work?**

**I have decided the whole team Ash will capture in the future. This time, the story will be a bit dark. It will also be quite lengthy.**

**Ash will not capture too many** **Pokémon. He will have a total of ten captures.**

**The story will remain a mix of both anime and games.**

**Aura will become an important factor later on.**

**So review please.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello everyone. Here is the second chapter. I have added some information about Red in here and gave Ash another Pokémon.**

**Now to answer reviews:-**

**LightRayPearlshipper: I understand what you mean. I'll make sure to try and improve. Also, I rushed through Viridian City because there will be a later time when Ash will explore the city thoroughly.**

**The Immortal Doctor Reid: I haven't thought of it yet. Will decide later on.**

**ultimateCCC: I told this before. Please don't ask me to add some other Pokemon in the team. I have decided on ten ****Pokémon for Ash's team and that is final.  
**

**Adjuster: He'll get a Lucario eventually. A powerful one for sure.**

**Now to the story. Read and review please.**

Chapter Two-The first Encounter

Ash looked in awe at the huge structure in front of him. The massive form made up of earth and rocks that rose into the endless sky to a height of four thousand meters-Mount Moon. The huge mountain stood like a guard blocking the exit of a room. It separated Pallet Town, Viridian City and Pewter City from the other parts of Kanto. Mt. Moon was an important reason why these places were sparsely populated and poorly connected to the huge cities like Celadon and Saffron.

Ash gazed at the mountain and shivered on the thought that this knoll would be above his head soon. He could see the sun slowly moving towards the west. A few flocks of Pidgey flew overhead, hurried to reach their nests.

The rocky terrain and low humidity of the area served as a booster to the countless Rock and Ground types that inhabited the massive land structure. There were numerous caverns, tunnels and chasms filled with many kinds of Pokémon and unknown secrets inside the mountain.

Mt. Moon was always an enigma to travelers. It covered them over their heads and led the way kindly through the huge tunnel created for transport. But it also punished trespassers who violated the rules of nature. The terrain was extremely rough in the farther parts of the mountain.

The Pokémon that inhabited the terrain were quite friendly but on venturing to the interior, one could find some of the strongest and scariest wild Pokémon inside the caverns and chasms. The legends said that Mt. Moon was touched by heaven. A huge meteor had impacted on the crag and its fragments were scattered inside the place.

This meteor was known as Moon Stone. It was said to be ridden by some Pokémon who came to the earth from outer space. Clefairy and Clefable were just some of them. There were many others including Jigglypuff and Wigglytuff.

Ash smiled as he remembered the conversation he had with Prof. Oak recently. The old researcher had told him something new and almost unbelievable-that there was a type of Pokémon called as Fairy and many Pokémon were of that type. He could not digest the fact so easily.

But Prof. Oak was one of the supreme authorities when it came to research on Pokémon. The old man had explained that the Pokémon discovered to have Fairy typing were mostly those which showed signs of Normal typing. But the slight variations of their behavior, appetite etc were observed and studied in detail by various scientists and at last they concluded that it was a new type.

Considering how Clefairy were the first to be confirmed to have the typing, it was named as Fairy type. It was a strange discovery as defensively; the Fairy type resisted Bug, Dark and Fighting type moves and was totally immune to Dragon type moves. The only two weaknesses were Poison and Steel. Offensively, Fairy type was advantageous against Dark, Fighting and Dragon types and was resisted by both its weaknesses and Fire types.

Fairy type was discovered recently and as such not many people knew about it. The Pokémon League had not yet released the information to public. So only the authorities and a few others like Ash knew the details.

Ash decided mentally to try and capture a Clefairy if possible. They were quite rare after all. Humming, Ash crossed the entrance of Mt. Moon. He was welcomed by the darkness that enveloped everything inside. He could barely see his own body. Thankfully, Ash had bought a flashlight from the mart outside the mountain.

Turning on the flashlight and pointing it ahead, Ash looked at the tunnel in front of him. There was a route drilled out for the travelers to pass through from Pewter to Cerulean. There were no lights in the tunnel since it troubled the Pokémon. The travelers had to bring their own lanterns or flashlights. There was another route from outside the mountain but it was three times the length of the tunnel and it would take at least a day to cover the distance. The tunnel however could be passed in just a few hours.

Ash called out Mareep and Heracross, "Mareep, take care of any Zubat that try to get close and Heracross, attack the Rock types that might create trouble for Mareep."

The two battlers nodded and walked beside their trainer. Ash looked at his Pokémon. He was a bit disappointed that he couldn't get the Charmander he wished for but he was not sad anymore. He had great friends now. Starly was quite attached to Ash since he saved her. Heracross was a strong battler and respected Ash for his bravery. Mareep and he had become close quickly, thanks to their incident with the Fearow.

Ash was amazed by how the Electric type had forgone the nervous demeanor and turned into the aggressive one he was now. The wool Pokémon was quite shy when they met but had warmed up to him quickly. And since their accident, he had started becoming more aggressive which was quite strange for the normally timid species.

A few Zubat tried to swoop at Ash but Mareep's powerful Thunderbolt made short work of them. The small sphere on the Electric type's tail was glowing as a beacon and let him see things clearly even in the dark cave.

Heracross had proved his herculean strength once again when he singlehandedly beat the hell out of three Geodude that appeared out of nowhere. The Bug type didn't even pant when he finished off all the three at the same time.

After an hour, Ash had covered a lot of ground. He turned around a curve and saw a small entrance opposite to the main route. He frowned and slowly walked at the tiny route. The young trainer widened his eyes when he heard someone whispering from inside the place. He was thankful to be standing at a corner due to which he would remain concealed.

"Sinsh everyone elshe ish busy shtealing da Pokémon around here, we's go for the Moon Shtone. I can get da location from shome Pokémon. We's can shteal it and den da Bosh will give ush rewardsh. I shall be da top cat onesh again." A nasal voice was heard.

"Hee hee. I can't wait to get the promotions. We might even become the new Executives or Admin." A man spoke excitedly.

A lady snorted, "Shut up and be quick or else we lose everything we planned for."

Ash heard them walking away and slowly peeped from a side. He saw a man and a woman dressed in strange white clothes and…a cat walking on its hind legs?

'Is that a Meowth?' Ash mused, 'The two voices were those two people but the nasal childish voice wasn't them. Is it… is it possible for a Pokémon to speak in human language?'

He noticed that the man wore a white shirt and white trouser with black boots. The shirt had a red 'R' imprinted on it. His hairs were lavender colored and he held a red rose in one of his hands. The woman; however was red haired but similarly dressed. The two had a few Poke balls attached to their belts.

"Let us follow them and see what they are up to. May be we can stop them. I shall be recalling you now Heracross. I'll call you if the need be." Ash whispered to his Pokémon and recalled the beetle. He was aware of the fact that the powerful steps of Heracross would grab attention. Motioning for Mareep to follow him, Ash started walking in the direction the trio had gone.

Ash switched off his flashlight so that no one would notice him. He knew how grave the situation was. He had recognized the symbol on the dresses. It was something anyone in Kanto would identify-the symbol of Team Rocket. Team Rocket was a very notorious criminal group that was famed for stealing Pokémon and many twisted researches.

The young trainer had learnt about Team Rocket from Prof. Oak. Team Rocket was originally led by a man known as Giovanni-I. He was the powerful leader of the famed Viridian City Pokémon Gym. Ash was told that Team Rocket used to be an even greater force in older times but the power of good still prevailed and Red, the supposed Pokémon Master destroyed the whole organization.

It sent chills down his spine. Red was just eleven years old when he did the amazing feat. He had even beaten the Pokémon League and become the Champion the same year. Ash wondered how the legendary trainer had grown so strong. Prof. Oak had told him that Red attacked Team Rocket and seized the result of their experiments, something which would have started a cataclysmic devastation to any of Team Rocket's foes.

What it was, no one knew. No one ever dared questioning the fearsome trainer. Even Lance-the then Elite Four member and current Champion-feared Red. The League had granted the Champion trainer permission to take any action against Team Rocket. The response was immediate and ruthless. Red and his team slaughtered down a total of five hundred infested Pokémon that were experimented upon and rehabilitated more than three times the ones they killed. The Master casually released from confinement and captured fifty extremely powerful Pokémon possessed by Team Rocket. He used his powerful Psychic Pokémon and put Giovanni in a coma till death.

After the war he fought against the evil and singlehandedly won, the legend strangely ordered some modifications to the League rules. He suggested many changes that would let people be dependent on Pokémon and reduce the use of technology. Use of gunpowder and armaments were banned. Availing private transportation facilities required prior permission from the League authorities. Use of helicopters was reduced since they disturbed the environment.

Ash wondered why Red ordered such things but he agreed that the ideas were quite impressive. Ash saw the man as a hero, although he had never seen him. Oddly, no one even happened to have a picture or video footage of him either. Ash wished to ever see the strongest and the most brilliant trainer ever born who disappeared after leading the administration of the League for fifteen years.

The Master left a few words before he vanished which Oak had recited as, 'Long gone from the flashes of popularity and the comforts of civilization, I shall stay alert and sharp observing the growth of abomination. I shall return lending my assistance to the allies when the greatest of evils arise. To my greatest friends and my dear wife, the fights are stopped for now, spread life, spread life.'

Ash suspected that the professor knew who Red really was but never bothered asking since the old man seemed to be sad when he spoke of the Master. Now after twenty years of its crash, Team Rocket had shown its face again. Ash recalled that it was five years ago when the Team struck again. No one understood how the organization was resurrected. Though they were weaker than before, they were still a threat and needed to be eliminated.

He was shook out of his thoughts by Mareep who sent a weak Thunderbolt at the trainer. He growled and motioned for Ash to walk ahead faster.

Mareep had somehow reduced the light of his tail. The two tiptoed their way through the dark tunnel listening to the voice of the Meowth. The Scratch Cat Pokémon was making quite the ruckus. Ash heard a loud cry of some Pokémon and quickly dashed forward to see what was happening. He hid behind a rock and peeked at the scene unfolding in front of him.

A level below where Ash and Mareep hid, the Meowth was blocking the way of a small pink Pokémon. The little creature was surrounded by the trio and Meowth was threatening it. Showing off his sharp claws, Meowth grinned, "Come on, tell Meowt wher ya goin. We need ta know about da Moon Shtone."

The Pokémon was shivering in fright. Its body was light pink. It stood on its two legs and held a small gray stone in its stubby hands. Both the hands had three fingers and tiny claws. There was a swirly tuft of fur on its head, a small bushy tail and two wing-like protrusions on its back. Ash recognized the creature as a Clefairy. He knew what to do and took a deep breath steeling him.

Ash silently called out Starly, "Be as silent as possible. When I signal, Starly and Mareep, both of you use Feather Dance and Cotton Spore on those three. Then we grab that Clefairy and run ahead."

The two Pokémon nodded resolutely and prepared for the ambush. Ash nodded and his first two Pokémon rushed forward. The two released a bunch of feathers and wool onto the Team Rocket members. By the time the trio realized the danger, they were covered in the annoying wool and feathers. Ash leapt down from his hiding and quickly picked up the Clefairy who was still shocked to react and started running. Ash heard the trio of Team Rocket cursing loudly at the sudden intrusion. They were annoyed like hell due to the unexpected intervention.

He dashed forward as hard as possible. He could hear his friends following him. After running for a whole minute, he reached a strange place with many openings. The Clefairy cried in delight and hopped down from his hands. Smiling at him, the Fairy type motioned to follow it. The Clefairy hopped away into an opening without any doubt. Too confused to react, Ash just followed along with Starly and Mareep.

Ash walked down many steps and saw another small cave. He bent down and entered it. After crossing the whole tunnel, he reached a huge clearing. The place was a massive chasm. The top opened into the sky and the full moon could be seen clearly through the hole. Ash gasped when he saw a huge gray stone in the middle of the crater. It was smooth and rounded, and held a strange glow. Mareep and Starly were staring at the stone with a look of reverence.

Ash noticed that the Clefairy was looking for something. It suddenly started shouting towards different directions. Many rumbling noises were heard from the mountain. Ash could hear heavy footsteps and deep growls. Along with that, chattering of many Pokémon was heard. Ash slowly sat down beside a huge boulder where not many would notice him. Mareep and Starly huddled into him and looked over.

From various caverns around the chasm emerged variety of Pokémon. Ash recognized Nidoran and their evolutions headed by two massive creatures-Nidoking and Nidoqueen. They were the largest of their herd and dwarfed every single Pokémon around. Ash also noticed numerous Golem standing on the different levels of stones. There were a few swarms of Paras and Parasect in a corner chattering nervously. Then from numerous small entrances, over hundred Clefairy appeared.

The one Ash had rescued slowly moved towards the huge boulder. In a ring of small stones around the boulder, there was an empty slot which the little fur ball completed by placing the stone it carried. In a moment, all the stones started glowing and the Clefairy arranged themselves around the boulder. All the little Pokémon started to dance around the huge boulder in a specific pattern consisting of stepping to the left, then right and at last a twirl. Ash looked on in awe as the numerous Clefairy danced around elegantly. Every other Pokémon present had bowed down to the Moon Stone, as Ash recognized it now. Then suddenly everyone stopped on hearing a guttural growl.

Ash looked at the source of the noise and froze when he saw the absolutely monstrous Nidoking glaring at him, eyes blazing, head lowered and venom dripping from the long horn on its head. Ash gulped as all the Pokémon noticed him. The Clefairy started yelling at him and the Nidoking slowly walked forward. The Pallet native was too shocked to move and started sweating profusely. Mareep and Starly squeaked in fear. Ash quickly recalled them and stepped back carefully.

Just as the Nidoking was about to charge, one of the walls shook. Every Pokémon turned towards the wall worried. Ash groaned as he saw a huge machine coming out bursting the wall. The whole mountain shook due to the impact. The trio who had tried to capture Clefairy was stationed in it. Before they could do anything, Ash ran forward and placed himself between them and the Moon Stone.

"Team Rocket!" he yelled, "I won't let you attack this place and steal the precious Moon Stone. This place is sacred for the Pokémon who reside in Mt. Moon. Go away from here."

Nidoking looked at the tiny human in surprise. He had thought that all humans were same. He couldn't believe that one was opposing the idea of taking away the Moon Stone, one so young nonetheless. He looked at the boy's eyes and saw a strange glint of determination, unseen in any child before.

"Leave this place and you shall not be punished." Ash shouted again, anger clear in his voice.

"Ha ha", the woman laughed, "James, do you see that? The twerp wants to mess with us, Team Rocket. He thinks he can defeat us and get away so easily."

James smirked, "Oohh he's so brave Jessie! But twerp, you need to be strong to oppose us. Right now, you stand no chance. Meowth, run over him."

The Scratch Cat Pokémon laughed evilly and pressed a button which made the machine to move. Ash closed his eyes, clenched his fists and waited for the impact. But none came. He slowly opened his eyes and gasped as he saw the Nidoking in front of him. The massive Ground type had held back the machine easily with his bare hands.

Nidoking raised his huge arm. The Nidoqueen charged at the machine and both the Matriarch and Patriarch punched onto the machine together. The machine crumbled under the massive power of the two Poison types as they rampaged and the three Team Rocket members were thrown out.

Suddenly from the broken wall, many other men dressed in Team Rocket uniforms emerged, but all were dressed in black instead of white. Behind them was a lady dressed in black business suit and a small badge. From the symbol and the way she held herself, Ash surmised that she was a higher ranking official of Team Rocket.

The lady had brown hairs which were tied into a bun and wound using a strange metal needle. One end of it was sharp while the other held a flower-a Black Tulip. Her sharp eyes narrowed at Ash and she barked out, "You! How dare a wretched lowlife like you oppose Team Rocket? Everybody attack!"

All the men released Pokémon, who were majorly Poison and Dark types. Nidoking growled and charged at the smaller foes. Many of the Pokémon were hurled back due to the brute force behind the charge and flew outside the cavern. The Clefairy who were filled in the area attacked the opponents. While Clefairy were not known to be very strong or temperamental, the whole group together was quite potent.

The grunts' Pokémon had tried to get close to the Moon Stone but suffered at the hands of Nidoqueen. She brutally rammed her horn into many opponents and smacked down many with her powerful arms. But unfortunately, due to the attacks, the stone was hit many times and started cracking slowly.

The lady who headed the team cursed and pulled out the needle from her hairs. Pointing it at the nearest foe, who was the huge Nidoking, she hurled the needle. The needle was just a few feet away from the Patriarch when Ash noticed it. He called out to the Nidoking to watch out.

Then an extremely powerful being made itself known. The needle stopped in mid air and simply broke into fine pieces. The grunts fell on the ground in agony as a powerful psychic energy filled the area. Domino and Ash felt like they were being squeezed. Ash gasped and opened his mouth to suck in air. He found it difficult to breath. He clutched his chest and sucked in more oxygen.

A squeak was heard from the sky and everyone saw a small blue halo that glowed like a miniature sun slowly landing on the ground. Ash felt his eyes burning as he looked on. Tiny beams of energy flew all around and knocked out the members of Team Rocket. The power of the beams made even the earth tremble. The Moon Stone vibrated slowly from the immense energy and then exploded in a blinding white light.

The blue orb ceased shining and released its immense power and in its place, Ash saw a Pokémon similar to Clefairy smiling at them. But it was quite larger than Clefairy. The fragments of the Moon Stone rained down onto the group. Ash smiled as many Clefairy started glowing. They slowly shifted shapes and accepted their new forms. The raven haired trainer realized that the powerful being was a Clefable when many of the Clefairy evolved into the similar form.

Ash looked on in horror at the scene. Most of the Pokemon brought by Team Rocket were motionless in pools of blood. Red was everywhere. He saw Nidoking and Nidoqueen with their bodies covered in the foes' life liquid. Ash felt the urge to throw up at the pungent odor of blood. It was too strong to ignore.

He then looked over to the calm Clefable who was commanding the other Pokémon to leave the place. Every single Pokémon in the cavern bowed to the great Fairy type. Ash was awed by the respect it was getting from all others. Slowly, all the Pokémon except the influential Clefable left the cavern. Ash observed that he was left alone with the leader.

The Clefable floated towards him slowly. It stopped in front of him and looked into his eyes. Ash froze as he felt a strange warm feeling inside of him. The he heard an authoritative yet comforting voice inside his head, 'Worry not dear child. You did the right thing. You were courageous enough to obstruct the path of evil. You have the quality infused in you.'

Ash observed that the Pokémon seemed to be very old. Its body color was fading slowly but its powers were still like the vast ocean. He smiled sadly, "But I could not help save the Moon Stone. It's destroyed now. So many Pokémon are dead."

Ash heard a light chuckle, 'This is just another fragment. And the ones who lost their lives were destined for that. Their mind and soul were twisted and corrupted. You need not worry about it. Worry only about your future. It is bright though. You are destined to be great. It's in your blood.' the ancient creature assured him.

Then he heard more, 'This lady is known as Domino. She led this group here. I suggest you contact the human authorities. I shall teleport them outside the mountain.'

Ash nodded and pulled out his Pokédex. Before he could call the Police, a blue light flashed beside him. He saw an Alakazam appearing near Domino. The next moment, the lady disappeared with the Psychic type.

The impressive Fairy type sighed, 'It seems she was important and had a backup. Anyways, you must contact and get these people imprisoned.' The Clefable's eyes flashed an ethereal pink and a similar color flashed over Ash and the grunts.

In a moment, Ash found himself outside Mt. Moon. He looked around and realized that this was not the side he entered from. He checked in his Pokédex and saw that he had been teleported to the other side of the mountain, near Cerulean City.

* * *

Ash huffed and panted as he reached the Cerulean City Pokémon Centre. It was an overall tiring day. He had witnessed so many things on his way. Ash had contacted the Police Force of Cerulean City right after he had been teleported.

The cops had arrived and arrested all the grunts but strangely, none of them remembered what happened or how they were caught. Ash suspected that it was the powerful Fairy type's doing. It was an unbelievable sight to witness such powers in a small Pokémon.

The cops were quite surprised to see their young informer and the knocked out grunts. They had tried to keep the whole ordeal quite but had made sure to keep his records with them.

As Ash moved inside the Pokémon Centre, Nurse Joy gasped, "Oh my God! You look so worn down. Are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm fine. Thanks Nurse Joy. I just had a rough day inside Mt. Moon." he replied with a smile.

"Ohh so you are the young boy who Officer Jenny was speaking about?" the Nurse looked impressed, "It's quite surprising for such a young man to do so much. But I must thank you too for helping. So do you need a room to stay in?"

Ash rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "Yeah. And please heal my friends too." he handed over his Poke balls to the nurse.

"Alright. Just give me your Trainer Card." She took the Pokédex from Ash and typed in his information before handing it back. Then taking the Poke balls, she arranged them in a tray and handed over a key to Ash, "First room to the right is yours. That's the best we have. I'll send your Pokémon to your room."

"Thanks a lot. See you later." Ash smiled and walked away to the direction the nurse had pointed out. He entered the room and removed his backpack. After a quick stretch, Ash moved towards the bathroom for a shower.

When Ash came out from the shower, he heard a knock on his door. He went over to the door and opened it to see a pink egg Pokémon holding a tray. His Poke balls were arranged in the tray.

"Ohh Thank you Chansey!" he petted the small Pokémon on its head and took his Poke balls. Chansey bowed to him and walked away.

Ash released his Pokémon who all sighed in relief when they saw him. Mareep and Starly immediately nuzzled into him. Heracross gave a curt nod and sat on the ground. Ash sat beside Heracross holding Starly and Mareep.

"We are at Cerulean City. This city is famous for Water Pokémon and for a Gym. We shall be exploring the city tomorrow and shall challenge the Gym the day after."

All the three Pokémon cheered at this. Ash smiled happily and got up, "Let us sleep now. I shall let you guys outside the Poke balls for now. See you in the morning. Good night."

As the three cried their approval, Ash went over to the bed and lay down. Within a few minutes, he drifted into deep slumber.

Morning:-

Ash was walking towards the Cerulean Cape observing the place and exploring the city. Mareep trotted beside him. The Electric type was looking at the stream that coursed through the city. Ash had told him and the others about his plan of capturing a Water type. The Wool Pokémon was excited about getting a new teammate and as such was observing to find a prospective addition.

Ash was about to climb onto the bridge that led towards Cerulean Cape when he saw someone walking towards him. He smirked on recognizing Gary Oak. The brown haired boy sneered, "Got any better Ashy boy? Ready to be beaten?"

"Heh if I remember, you were soundly defeated last time." Ash mocked.

Gary looked over to Mareep and chuckled, "I see that you haven't even evolved that little runt. How many Pokémon did you capture till now?"

"Two."

Gary laughed loudly, "Only two more? I guess your win was just a lucky fluke after all. You can't be compared to my standards. I already have captured twenty Pokémon."

Ash clenched his fists but didn't retort. He mentally noted that Gary's team won't be as well trained as his if he had so many Pokémon. Ash knew that his own Pokémon were less in number but were trained individually and were quite powerful considering his experience of just a few weeks.

Gary took out a Poke ball and hurled it into the air. Out came a bird Pokémon that Ash had come to despise-Spearow. It looked at Ash with narrowed eyes and screeched out a challenge. Ash stiffened at seeing the Tiny Bird Pokémon.

With a growl, Ash hurled Starly's Poke ball. The little bird saw Spearow and screeched even more loudly.

"Quick Attack. Then use Steel Wing." Ash sniffed.

"Block with Aerial Ace."

The two birds rammed into each other furiously trying to knock out each other. Ash grinned, "Feather Dance. Then scratch its face."

The Starling Pokémon growled angrily and covered her foe in a thick sheet of feathers and clawed its face callously. Blood dripped down as Spearow's face was cut by Starly's sharp talons.

"Hey, what the hell? What are you doing? How can you hurt my Pokémon so austerely?" Gary cried out.

"Because you irritate me and your Pokémon is of the kind which gave me this." Ash turned to a side and pointed at the long scar on his face. Gary visibly recoiled on seeing the mark.

"Use Aerial Ace. Finish it." Ash mentally thanked Heracross for helping Starly learn the move. It had been just a matter of few days before she mastered the move. It was easy for her since she was a Flying type and had good control over flight.

Starly swerved in the air and disappeared from sight. After a moment, she appeared behind Spearow and rammed into it. Spearow tumbled into the ground bleeding. Gary quickly recalled his fallen Pokémon.

Starly screeched in victory and suddenly froze. Ash watched in joy as her body was engulfed in a bright light. Her body grew slowly. A tuft of feathers rose from her head. Wing span spread out longer and Starly's voice became deeper.

As the light cleared, Ash smiled at his new Staravia. Her eyes were narrowed and had become intimidating. Gary grumbled and called out his starter. Ash noticed that Squirtle had evolved into Wartortle. It now had spiky ears, twin tails and small fangs that were seen outside. It growled at Staravia but backed off immediately when the bird's eyes glinted.

Ash grinned as Intimidate worked. The ability was quite useful. He smirked and started off, "Use Whirlwind. When it is knocked down, use Quick Attack."

Staravia flapped her wings powerfully and made a huge gust of wind fly at Wartortle and then dashed forward.

"Ice Beam." Gary barked. Before Ash could call out a warning, Staravia was hit by the freezing cold beam of icy energy. She fell down frozen and knocked out.

Ash recalled the Flying type, "Thanks girl and congratulations. Mareep, win this."

His starter growled and rushed forward using Agility.

"Fire a Thunderbolt. Then use Cotton Spore."

Mareep's electricity arced through the air towards Wartortle. Gary called out quickly, "Iron Defense. Then Ice Beam."

Wartortle pulled its limbs and head inside its shell and endured the Electric move. Before Mareep could use Cotton Spore, the Water type used Ice Beam, this time hitting Mareep. It froze Mareep's tail partially.

"Ignore the ice and use Iron Tail." Ash called out.

"Use Aqua Jet."

As Mareep swung his steel hard tail at the opponent, Wartortle covered itself in a cocoon of water and met head on with Mareep. This time, both of them fell down and then lost consciousness.

Gary recalled Wartortle as did Ash to Mareep. The young Oak then narrowed his eyes, "Let me see how you beat this one. I took this Pokémon from gramps because of its rare ability of evolution. It is strong and you'll need a miracle to beat it."

Ash held his breath in anticipation and worry. Gary hurled another Poke ball releasing a cream and brown canine-like Pokémon with a cream collar of fur and bushy tail. Its ears were long and eyes were the cutest ever possible. It was an Eevee.

Ash sighed in relief. He grinned at his rival and walked forward to pet the little Normal type who cooed and nuzzled into Ash's arm, "Gary, you told me just now that I need a miracle to beat this cute little one." He then looked at the small Pokémon, "Are you that strong Eevee?"

The little fur ball yipped happily and licked Ash's face. Ash chuckled, "Then I must apologize for defeating you. Let me show you the miracle I have."

The raven haired boy backed off and confidently released his third Pokémon. Gary's face paled when he saw the next opponent.

* * *

Ash recalled his battle with Gary as he walked towards the stream drifted through the city. He was not happy. His opponent had used TMs abundantly to defeat him. But thankfully, Ash's team was well trained and he had the advantage against the absurdly annoying Eevee. While it did not possess raw power like Wartortle, Eevee had dangerous stamina and irritating moves like Sand Attack and Wish. Heracross' extreme resilience and staggering power was the only reason why Ash had still won.

Now he wanted to get hold of a Water type Pokémon as soon as possible to avoid future losses due to moves like Ice Beam. And he was going to search for one at the stream.

Ash walked up the bridge and stopped when he saw a group of people gathered together. He moved forward and noticed that Officer Jenny stood between the crowds. She was in her regular dark blue uniform and held a black baton. Beside her was an orange and black striped canine with a cream tail-a Growlithe.

"Officer…" he called out, "What's the problem here?"

The lady turned and smiled at him, "Oh it's you! I am here because these people called the Gym Leader telling about a rather snappy Slowpoke. It attacks if someone goes nearby. And it is strong. The Gym Leader instead told me to attend to it."

"What the hell are you doing narrating the story to a kid? What good will it make? Can you capture it or not?" a man yelled from the crowd.

"Who do you think you are speaking about? This kid knocked out an entire group of Rockets." The lady officer snapped.

The audience visibly gasped at this. They had heard rumors about some operation that happened the last night. But they didn't know that the informer was so young.

"Where can I find the Slowpoke?" Ash asked resolutely. He wanted to capture it if the talk of it being so strong was true.

"It is often seen in the waters to the north of the Pokémon Centre. I can take you there in my boat kid. If you can defeat and capture that thing, we'll be grateful." The man who yelled earlier replied.

* * *

Ash now stood on a speedboat looking at the odd Slowpoke. Its body was a pale pinkish color. Its eyes were wide open and it held a fierce gaze unlike any Slowpoke Ash had ever seen. He had noticed the strange coloration of its body and decided to capture it at all cost.

The Slowpoke was resting on a small land mass in the middle of the water with many others of its species. All the other Slowpoke slowly retreated into the water when they noticed the boat but this particular one didn't back off a bit and just sat there gazing around.

Ash had observed that the Pokémon reacted only to huge sounds and disturbances. He had confirmed this by making Staravia fly around the place. The Water type didn't react to her but did when he was noticed.

"Slowpoke! I have heard that you are strong. I challenge you to a battle." He declared.

He made the sailor dock the boat and saw with a grin that the Slowpoke was following them. He came out of the boat and stood on the shore. The part Psychic type walked ashore and faced Ash. It slowly pulled out a strange crown like rock from its back and wore it on the head.

The sailor gasped, "You better be careful. It's taking you seriously. It goes all out when it wears that crown."

Ash recalled Staravia and summoned Mareep. The Wool Pokémon smiled at the Slowpoke before realizing that it was a battle.

He growled at the opponent who cried back. Ash smirked, "Alright. Use Thunderbolt."

Mareep fired the huge bolt of lightning at Slowpoke. Slowpoke's eyes glowed an ethereal pink and the electric sparks stopped in the air. It slowly redirected itself o the ground and dissipated.

"What the hell? It simply stopped the attack? Alright move forward with Agility."

As Mareep rushed forward, Slowpoke's body gave off a slight red glow.

Ash frowned, "Now Use Cotton Spore." Mareep used practiced technique when he reached beside the opponent but was stunned when Slowpoke created a sphere of water and hurled it into the wool. The wet substance fell on the ground while the Water type move slammed into Mareep and he fell down near Slowpoke.

The Water and Psychic type lunged at Mareep. Its head shone blue and it tried head butting the Electric type.

Ash recognized the move as Zen Headbutt. He cursed on realizing that Slowpoke's attack held high power behind them since his starter seemed hurt after the Water Pulse. He shouted, "Mareep, block it with Iron Tail. Then use Thunderbolt again."

The two attacks connected and Mareep skidded back a feet while Slowpoke just stood its ground. It was struck by Thunderbolt at close range and cried out in pain. It fell down smoking but got up slowly, clearly angry.

Just when it was about to attack, Mareep's body was engulfed in the familiar light of evolution. He cried out in pain as his weight was transferred from front legs to hind legs. The color of body changed from blue to pink. The wool changed from yellow to white and was reduced only to the neck and head. His tail sphere became blue in color. Ash gasped as he heard Mareep's pained cries.

The Slowpoke cocked its head in curiosity at Flaffy. Ash rushed forward as the light of evolution subsided and the energy slowly left his starter. Flaffy slowly opened his eyes and glared around.

"Flaffy!" Ash called, "Are you alright?"

The Electric type's eyes flashed with recognition and a few blue sparks flew from his body to Ash. The trainer felt his body tingle from the light sparks. Flaffy growled happily and looked at Slowpoke.

The Water type grinned in approval and fired a blast of Water at the opponent. Ash's eyes widened when he saw a spiral over the thin gush of water signifying the power behind the move. Flaffy stood in front of Ash and raised his arms. A small sphere of electricity crackled in between his arms and then flew at the Water Gun.

The Electro Ball as Ash saw in his Pokédex, pushed back the Water Gun and slammed into Slowpoke. Before anyone could react, Flaffy fired another Thunderbolt which ensured Ash the victory. He took out a Poke ball and hurled it at the oddly colored strong Pokémon.

The Water and Psychic type turned into red energy and was sucked into the contraption. The ball shook wildly as Slowpoke tried to escape but eventually it stopped with a click signifying the successful capture.

The next day:-

Ash stood on a floating platform in the Cerulean Gym facing the Gym Leader. She was a rather annoying girl. Her orange hairs were tied into a sideways ponytail. She wore a sea blue swimsuit. The girl had a nasty temper, as revealed when one of her three sisters tried to rile her up.

Ash had defeated the girl's first Pokémon, a Staryu using Staravia. The newly evolved bird had grown more aggressive and attacked viciously. She had easily finished off the Staryu. Ash switched out Staravia when Misty, the Gym Leader called out a Dewgong.

Right now, he had called out Slowpoke to battle Dewgong and was faring quite well. He smirked, "Use Confusion to pull it towards you."

Ash had introduced himself and the team to Slowpoke who agreed to accompany him on the condition that the people of Cerulean left his territory unexplored. The Pallet native explained the citizens of Cerulean about the situation and advised that the Pokémon be left undisturbed.

Slowpoke was ready to battle for Ash and wanted nothing but to be strong. And he was proving it in the Gym. The Psychic type exerted his mind control and the huge Water and Ice type was pulled towards Slowpoke who sat on a smaller platform.

"Use Zen Headbutt." Ash smirked. Slowpoke's eyes glowed and his head was covered in blue streaks. He slammed his head into the Dewgong's gut. The part Ice type fell down too exhausted to battle.

* * *

**And there's the second chapter. I cut short the Gym battle as this chapter had a lot of battles already. Read and review. See you all next time.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello friends. I know I am a bit late for the update. Sorry about that. I have made this chapter a bit shorter to accommodate just one part of the story. Ash gets a new Pokemon and a cool rival.**

**Now for answering the reviews:**

**Adjuster:- Right now, only Kanto, Orange Islands and Sevii Islands are going to be included in the story. So as far as this story goes, it'll only include ten Pokemon from those three regions. I'll think about creating other parts of the story including remaining regions later.**

**Knight master ash:- Yes, he'll get one. A hot headed, cold blooded and vicious Pokemon. As a gift, Oak will give away the violent Pokemon to Ash.**

**theajs:- Well, the chapters wont be as long as in 'Traveler' because I'm not that good of a writer as 'The Straight Elf'. Please don't compare us. He's at a far higher level than me. But I am glad you view my story at par with it. I'll make sure to update from time to time and make them good.**

**Garm88:- Well, I am not a native English speaker. But I am sure my English isn't too bad. Also, 'austerely' means severely or strictly.**

**PsychicAuraKing123:- Thank you for spending your precious time reading my story. Please make sure to read and give your valuable comments.  
**

**azizurrahmana1:- I'll think about romance part later on. Right now, Ash is just 10.**

**J.F.C:- Will do. I have made this chapter a bit shorter thinking of your review.**

**Toshiro of the Eternal Dream:- Yes of course. That's what I had planned already.**

**Now to the chapter. Read and review guys.**

* * *

Chapter Three-The Vermillion Rivalry

"These traces of wet mud show that whoever barged in had been near the stream or Mt. Moon. The person has torn apart the whole place which suggests two possibilities-either he was searching for something or wants us to think so. The footprints and the distance between them suggest that the intruder was a male and would be around 5'7" high." a raven haired teenager spoke to the cops around him who were intently listening to his deductions while one of them was noting down everything.

The boy's fair face held an amused smile and his unruly hairs fell onto the forehead. He looked at the floor and walls intently until he found a few marks on the floor. He pointed out the marks to the cops, "These marks are from something heavy being shifted. Probably he moved that cupboard or the table. It confirms the possibility that he might have been really searching. He tried to find out whether something was hidden behind them."

Ash smiled as he heard the unparalleled deduction by the detective. He smirked and entered the room, "The man is named Mark and is a Team Rocket grunt. He stole a Technical Machine of the move Dig, a file containing information about Fighting type Pokémon and also a prototype Poke ball that would supposedly make capturing Fighting type Pokémon easier. A slight variation from the Lure and Net balls which are used to capture Water and Bug types each. He probably wanted to get information on the technology and research."

The elder boy narrowed his eyes at the Pallet native, "And who might you be? How did you even get entry into the crime scene kid?"

Ash chuckled, "Ash Ketchum, Pokémon Trainer. I entered because I was allowed to since there was all about the thief in what I said." He smiled and locked eyes with the other boy, "Jimmy Kudo, nice to meet you." He extended his hand.

Jimmy, the detective shook the offered hand, "I have to know how you cracked it. How did you deduce all that?"

Ash simply pointed towards the door. On peeking outside, Jimmy saw that a man dressed in Team Rocket uniform handcuffed and held by cops. "I saw him running and found him suspicious. I battled him and the cops who arrived soon arrested him. Moreover, I like capturing those Rockets" the Pallet native grinned.

Jimmy snorted at this, "So you are that kid huh? But seriously, this isn't your work runt. I am to finish off those weirdoes."

Ash smirked, "Ohh you can have fun with them…" he narrowed his eyes, "…but only after I beat down the whole organization."

* * *

Ash smiled as he recalled the conversation with the young detective. He had known about Jimmy for a few months since he started appearing at various places solving cases. The elder boy-a mere high school student-was a wonderful tactician and his deduction skills were honed to perfection. He was eminent for some more things-Science and Soccer. The combination of his brilliance and power of a few handful Pokémon he trained made the team deadly.

Jimmy was the only son of Booker and Vivian Kudo. His father was renowned as a mystery writer while his mother was a famed and beautiful actress. The boy became recognized when he performed a stunt by defeating the leader of a minor Gym in a full battle using just an Arcanine, Conkeldurr, and Luxray. The leader was supposedly suspected of a robbery case which Jimmy solved with the leader ending as the culprit. The high school detective simply crushed the leader's team when he tried to escape.

The Pallet native now had the same goal as Jimmy-to blow away the regenerating ashes of Team Rocket. He was furious since they tried to steal the Moon Stone. Ash also wanted to complete what Master Red had started.

Currently, Ash walked on the road which led to Vermillion City. He had trained at Cerulean City for a week against various Water type Pokémon. He had also visited Bill, a researcher who lived at the Cerulean Cape. The visit was quite useful as Ash got the chance to study an Eevee and a few of its evolutions while training with them.

His Pokémon had grown stronger and now he was planning to challenge the Gym at Vermillion. Ash had researched about the Gym and had learnt that it specialized in Electric type Pokémon. The leader of the Gym was Lt. Surge, an ex-military man who was outright brutal and scary in battles. His records suggested that the man had gone all out on the recent challengers. This made most of them end up at the Pokémon Centers for treatment to their heavily injured Pokémon.

Ash hoped that he was ready for that kind of battles. He was training his Pokémon daily while also working out himself. He had been referring the map and sticking to routes that had Pokémon Centers at regular intervals. He didn't want to cook for him and all his Pokémon in the wild. While the young boy knew how to do the job, he wasn't an expert and did not even prefer cooking.

His travelling was helping him stay fit despite the heavy meals he had at the Pokémon Centers. He got quite a sum of money from battles. It was a good system-the losing trainer must pay some money to the winner. His win streak had let him earn handsomely.

Ash had brought out all his Pokémon except Slowpoke while he was walking. He did this at all the places possible. He knew that the Pokémon loved being out in the open. He made them eat their natural diet as much as possible and stay in tune to the surroundings.

Flaaffy was walking with him. Staravia had perched herself on Ash's shoulder and Heracross was buzzing around while occasionally moving ahead to suck out sap from some trees.

Ash thought over his team weighing the pros and cons.

Heracross was very strong in physical attacks and was not very social. He preferred training alone and was rash in battles. His battling style revolved mainly around countering moves and attacking on available chances. Ash also liked the fact that Heracross required almost nothing to be raised. He survived solely on tree sap and berries.

Staravia would eat small bugs and berries while also eating human made foods. She was the fastest of the team but was fragile. She was good at distracting opponents and dodging attacks easily. While she didn't have crude power like Heracross, her speed behind the moves made her dangerous.

Flaaffy ate human foods while eating berries rarely. He was the strongest of the group with quite high speed, good power and fairly high endurance. His style utilized speed and endurance equally. He was also very good as a team leader. Flaaffy was also the only team member Heracross would hang out the most with.

Slowpoke, the latest addition of the team was different from every one of them. Slowpoke ate very less and preferred only the weeds, fruits and berries. He was very very slow but had great endurance and packed quite some power behind his moves. He had accepted Ash's power and decided to accompany him. Also, Slowpoke was a natural leader to everyone except Flaaffy. The two had become good friends and were sparring partners.

Slowpoke had an unusual coloration but the Nurse at Cerulean City's Pokémon Centre had stated that it was just due to the lack of some nutrients. Ash had also noticed that Slowpoke was intelligent, very much so when compared to others of his species. The trainer had asked him about evolving once showing him pictures in Pokédex and the Dopey Pokémon immediately pointed at Slowking.

Ash was proud at his haul. His current team was quite balanced and fairly powerful compared to other rookies.

Ash started walking fast as he noticed dark clouds forming over his head slowly. The sun was becoming dimmer and the wind was picking up pace. Ash made all his Pokémon stick with him and checked his Pokédex for the location. He was relieved when the device showed that the nearby Pokémon Centre was within just fifteen minutes walking distance.

Ash was reaching a curve on the road when he saw an unclear, massive shadow being cast on the other side of the path from the dim rays of sun. He could only see the huge size. All of the Pokémon tensed up and made a circle around their trainer. Holding his breath, Ash moved forward and slowly looked towards from where the shadow originated.

To say that he was surprised would be an understatement. Gasping, Ash ran forward when he saw a severely injured Pokémon. It was sentient on a small rock, curled up to protect itself from the weather that was becoming harsh. It used its six bushy tails to cover the body. The Pokémon had many cuts and a few deep gashes on its body. Ash reached near the little orange fox-like Pokémon who immediately snarled making him back off.

Ash raised his hands into the air, "Relax. I won't hurt you. I am just worried about your injuries." He had recognized the creature as a Vulpix.

'Small light weighted canine. Fire type. Agile and good at using variety of moves although not very good at close combat. Is generally fragile so anything with high physical power can attack it and cause such injuries. The way it snarled suggests that it isn't afraid of humans. It didn't cower or look around for a way to escape. So it might have a trainer. A trained Pokémon won't be in such helpless state unless…abandoned! Then, it must be…Pokémon abuse.' Ash stopped his thoughts and gritted his teeth.

He crouched near the Vulpix. His Pokémon had gathered around him. Ash took a deep breath, "Do you have a trainer?"

The boy's fists clenched when the small Fire type gave a nod with a yelp. Ash sighed, 'So I am on the right track till now.' He pondered for a moment and noticed that Vulpix seemed anxious when mentioned about trainer. He decided to fire a shot in the dark, "Where is he? Are you waiting for him?"

The Vulpix cooed again. Ash sighed, "Can I at least look at your injuries? You cannot stay safe in such weather. I promise to accompany you back here."

Vulpix didn't seem convinced although a bit relaxed in Ash's presence. Flaaffy acted immediately and started talking. Ash looked on curiously and noted his starter motioning about Fearow. How he realized it, he didn't know. Ash had noticed that he was somehow able to understand his Pokémon to an extent. He could not elaborate how it happened but it was almost as if he felt their emotions which they tried to express.

The mention of the accident made Vulpix widen its eyes. Flaaffy pointed towards the Vulpix who nodded in acceptance. He quickly kept his backpack down and pulled out a dry towel. He quickly covered Vulpix in it and picked her up. After recalling his Pokémon, Ash started running forward.

* * *

Ash rushed into the Centre holding Vulpix. She was covered in a towel to avoid her from getting wet in the storm that was raging outside. Ash panted as he reached over to Nurse Joy at the reception desk and handed over the Pokémon, "I found her…on the… on the way here. Please…help her." He had recalled all his Pokémon and ran as fast as possible.

The Nurse gasped and immediately took over the Pokémon and called out, "Chansey, I need a stretcher for a small Fire type canine, the Operation Theatre ready if need be and antidotes."

Holding the injured Pokémon, she started walking away after speaking to Ash, "Wait here. I need to talk to you."

Ash noticed the towel he had covered Vulpix with. Its light blue color had become a reddish brown due to the dirt and blood on the Fire type's body. He grimaced at the view and noted mentally to buy a new one soon. Taking deep breaths to suppress his exhaustion, Ash sat down on a chair near the reception desk.

Three hours later, Nurse Joy came out and motioned for Ash to follow her. On entering an office room, she made him sit down and dialed a number and spoke, "Yes, I have the trainer with me. Please come in."

Ash frowned at this and was about to speak when Nurse Joy cut him off with a raised hand, "I am not asking anything. Your explanations and descriptions shall be heard by someone else. And about my job, that poor Vulpix is safe now. She was injected with heavy dose of poison-probably from a Nidorino or Nidorina,-seeing the type of injuries. She had to undergo a surgery due to a shard of pointed rock being pierced in her rib. Vulpix will have those cuts till she evolves. She also had breathing problems due to the venom which will clear only after two weeks. Till then she won't be able to breathe fire."

Ash smiled when he heard the news, "Thank you very much Nurse Joy. I was really worried about her condition." Before either of them could speak, the door to the room opened and an Officer Jenny entered.

"So, this is the trainer? Alright kid, start speaking. Where did you find the injured Vulpix?" she pulled a chair and sat down.

Ash slowly narrated the story to the officer. He sighed at last, "I really want to make sure that she is ok."

Nurse Joy smiled kindly at the boy, "You can help her if she joins your team. I'm sure she'll come with you since you rescued her."

The young trainer frowned, "What about her old trainer?"

Officer Jenny snorted, "We'll search for him and get him the maximum punishment. Nurse Joy has gathered some pictures of the abused Pokémon's injuries."

Ash nodded slowly. He was escorted by Nurse Joy to the room where Vulpix was resting.

He was led into a room filled with many machines and wires. On a lone bed, Vulpix lay asleep. Ash noticed the numerous wires attached to the canine's body. He looked at Nurse Joy questioningly.

"Just to observe the progress. My guess is that she'll be able to walk in may be three days and fully heal in almost a week. Except for the breathing problem, she will be fit to do anything. Pokémon bodies are more durable than humans." The lady smiled.

Ash walked up to the bed and slowly sat down beside it. He stroked the Fire type lightly who snuggled into his palm with a light croon. Nurse Joy left Ash with Vulpix and walked to the front area.

The young trainer called out Flaaffy and started filling in the information so that the Electric type would narrate everything to the other members later on. He declared that they would stay at the Centre till Vulpix was ready to leave and possibly try to recruit her.

* * *

Ash and his team were training relentlessly for the upcoming battle of Vermillion Gym. Lt. Surge was infamous for his Electric types and Ash was relying on Flaaffy and Heracross more since one was neutral and other was resistant to electricity. Slowpoke and Staravia were sure to not be included because of their weakness.

Vulpix had been interacting to Ash's team and had started to like their company. She would observe their training once she was able to walk and talked to them for long. Ash noticed that she was completely relaxed in his presence and even let him feed and pet her.

It was one of the days of training and Ash was returning to his room in the Center when he noticed a group of young people sitting in the restaurant. He saw them laughing loudly and making a ruckus. Nurse Joy did not like it but she didn't seem to react.

Ash walked over to her and inquired only to get a sad reply, "They are a group of bullies around here. All rich brats who are born just to harass others. Better not mess with them Ash"

Ash sighed and walked away shaking his head. He noticed a bunch of Poke balls with the group. He shrugged and walked away but froze when he heard one of them speaking, "Hey Damien, you used to have a Vulpix right?"

Ash turned around and glared at the group. A teenager, easily identified as the focus of the others laughed loudly, "Yeah. A weakling. It was so inept that even my Scyther could beat it. When my new Nidorino won against it, I left it on a rock and promised to come back for it later. The stupid thing believed me."

The boy was skinny and tall. He was a few years elder than Ash. The boy wore a pink shirt, brown jeans and goggles over his blue hairs. His face held an arrogant smirk as he joked about his Pokémon casually.

The whole group burst into laughter. Suddenly the boy who spoke was pushed hard and he fell down with a grunt. The whole group turned around and saw Ash standing in front of them, fists clenched and eyes narrowed. But before anyone could react, Nurse Joy came rushing, "Stop it. This place is not for fights. Please take outside whatever it is." She glanced at Ash, "I'll inform Jenny. Don't worry."

Ash stood opposite Damien who had a Poke ball in his hand, "So you are fighting for that weak Vulpix? You must be another bleeding heart." He chucked the ball and out came a Nidoking. Ash widened his eyes on noticing how the monster was smaller than any Nidoking he had seen. It was huge, no doubt. But the Poison type was not at all comparable to others of its species. 'It was clearly forced to evolve. Its body shape suggests that it isn't grown well. Trained badly no doubt'

Ash noticed through the corner of his eye that Vulpix was watching from a corner. With a sigh, he called out Slowpoke. The Water type stood lazily. But still his face gave off a regal aura. It was as if he was a mystical king with command over others. He was Ash's best bet right now-with an advantage against both types of Nidoking. "No mercy Slowpoke. He was the one who abandoned Vulpix." Ash saw Vulpix's eyes widening and sighed deeply knowing that the Fire type would be hurt.

Slowpoke's head snapped up and he glared at Damien. His sleepiness gone, the Psychic type got ready for battle. A strange pressure was built on everyone due to Slowpoke's growing psychic power.

"Nidoking, Horn Attack."

The massive Poison type charged lowering his horn which dripped venom. It felt like a truck racing forward. The ground trembled due to the force. Ash narrowed his eyes, "Stop him. Then use Water Pulse. Follow it with Water Gun."

Slowpoke effortlessly completed the combination, thanks to Ash's training of speeding up their reaction time. He raised his front leg and his eyes gave a mystical gleam. Nidoking was held mid-air with the Water type's powerful mental abilities and attacked with powerful water blasts.

Moments later, Nidoking lay in a crumpled heap and Slowpoke stood with a smug grin. Ash slowly recalled him with a few words of gratitude and smirked at Damien. The boy was shouting angrily at his Poke ball after recalling Nidoking. He glared at Ash with malice in his eyes, "You must have cheated. No bleeding heart who supports weaklings must win." Yelling, Damien lunged at Ash.

Ash felt a strange sensation in his heart. It was similar to when the powerful Clefable read his mind. Yet, it was different. This warmth was not invading like Clefable's powers. It was gushing out from his body. The feeling was making him relax. Ash could swear he had felt this before. A sudden surge of adrenaline often made him feel this way. But it was never so dominating.

He felt a sudden heave in the power and noticed that everything was starting to look green. His eyes darted sideways. Ash's mind escalated when he saw that the time had somehow slowed down. It felt like he was seeing everything in slow motion and as if a green film was kept in front of his eyes.

Damien threw his fist at Ash. The younger boy saw his right arm blocking the fist with a swift jab to the wrist. Grunting, Damien hit again but this time, Ash head moved left and then his right leg impacted hard on the other boy's rib. Growling, the teenager tried kicking Ash on his knee.

Ash saw in wonder as his body acted on his own and kicked on the incoming leg. Blocking the sweep, Ash clipped between Damien's right shoulder and neck with his left palm who cried out in pain and anger. The next moment, the raven haired boy's fist met Damien's face knocking him out.

Ash panted in exhaustion as he was returned to normal state. He looked on in disbelief at the sight. Damien lay on the ground, bleeding from his mouth and two teeth broken. His face had a black mark from the punch. He was clutching his ribs in pain.

It was then that he noticed a Police Patrol Car that stood on the side. An officer walked towards Ash and raised a handcuff.

* * *

Ash was seated inside the interrogation room on a chair. His Pokémon were stored with the cops. The room was empty and a dim bulb hung over Ash's head. There were no furniture in the room which was painted in a plain white. He could see the things outside but the room was not visible from the other side. Ash saw a couple of cars braking in front of the building.

Out of the vehicles, many official looking men, dressed in blazers appeared. All of them had a small red badge shaped as a 'G'. Their eyes were covered with black glasses. Ash realized that it was to conceal from others what they were looking at. He then noticed something else.

One of the men opened the door of another car and held it as if waiting for someone to get down. A small figure stepped out. The person was thin and short. He was old and his long beard made him resemble the Santa Claus Ash had seen pictures of. His attire was quite comical consisting of shorts, t-shirt and an inverted cap. The person's stature would make anyone laugh but Ash had the sense to not find him funny. After all, the young trainer recognized who the man was-Charles Goodshow, the President of the Pokémon League.

Ash looked on in awe, 'Why would Mr. Goodshow be here? He must be at the League Headquarters or at his home.'

The security that accompanied Mr. Goodshow created a protective layer around him and a lone Umbreon walked beside the President. 'Must be to avoid Psychic types from attacking.' Ash smiled. He was impressed by the kind of security.

All the officers in the building lined up in front of the group and saluted collectively. The old man nodded firmly with a slight raise of his right hand. The President spoke to the Chief Officer who in return nodded and gestured Mr. Goodshow towards the interrogation room politely. Ash gasped when he realized that they were headed towards him. 'What the hell is going on here? First I find myself doing strange things, then I'm arrested and now the President of Pokémon League comes to visit me?'

The door to the interrogation room was opened wide and the President entered the room followed by the Chief and the security men. Ash immediately stood up from his seat but was cut off by the President who motioned him to sit down. He looked at his staff, "Leave us." The men immediately stepped outside. The man then stared at the officer, "Charges?"

"Physical abuse on another trainer Sir. The trainer is Damien Fleets. He has a broken rib, two broken teeth and a bruise on the face. This boy had attacked immediately and incapacitated the other person as if it was routine stuff. But the charges have not been recorded yet Sir." The Chief explained Ash's case.

Ash wanted to retort but he had the sense to keep quiet. Mr. Goodshow's ancient eyes turned towards him and studied him slowly. The Umbreon walked upto Ash and slowly smelled him. It hit his legs with paws and then growled in approval. Goodshow ordered, "Get me a chair and leave us Officer."

The Chief nodded and disappeared. Within a moment, he returned and set a chair for the President. Saluting rigidly, he walked out. Goodshow stared into Ash's auburn eyes. The young boy had the urge to look away but his eyes wouldn't move. He felt another flash of green in front of his eyes. The momentary phenomenon made the President smile, "Ash Ketchum. Youngest person ever to have opposed Team Rocket so strongly and stopped a whole operation. Supposed rival of Detective Jimmy Kudo and Gary Oak. The future ally that will need support. I am surprised to find you here in such a condition. Tell me young man, what made you do this and how did you perform that feat."

Ash widened his eyes, 'He knows everything about me. Even that Jimmy and I decided to have an untold rivalry. I better tell him the truth.' He calmed himself down and explained everything to the man.

After Ash finished talking, the President sighed, "Ash, you are an important ally to the League since you helped us. Moreover, what you did was protecting a poor Pokémon's rights and thereby keep up the values of our rules. The moment you were detained, I was informed and the informers wanted me to get down here personally. We need you out."

"But how did you know I was here?" Ash frowned. Goodshow smiled at the obvious question, "Someone very powerful is watching over you. Come." He ordered.

Ash walked behind the old man and his Umbreon. Goodshow's security guards created a circle around them as soon as they exited. The President looked at the Chief Officer, "No charges to be filed. The boy is needed by the League. Erase all records and get the other trainer stripped of his license for he has been found guilty of Pokémon Abuse."

The Chief looked at Ash with wide eyes and then saluted, "Yes Sir. We'll proceed it right away." The Officer retrieved Ash's Pokémon and handed them over to the boy while whispering to him, "I don't know what you did for the League to be so important to them but you seem to be quite lucky."

Goodshow led Ash into his car and ordered the driver to take him to the Centre. As soon as they reached, Ash got down from the car and turned to look at Goodshow. The old man smiled, "This never happened. We'll meet again though." Ash nodded with a smile.

As Ash entered the Pokémon Centre, Vulpix came rushing and tackled him onto the floor. Ash groaned when he felt the hit. The Fire type licked his face and yipped. Ash grinned and hugged the canine with one hand and got up slowly. Nurse Joy smiled at the two, "I'm glad you listened to my words Vulpix. Ash is a really good guy."

Vulpix yipped again nuzzled into Ash's chest.

* * *

**Alright there goes chapter three. Now, I have a small question which I shall put up as a poll. Please vote for the poll so that I can decide on a storyline for later.**

**Enjoy. See ya till later.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Alright I'm back with a new chapter and much addition to the plot. Hope this will attract reviews and comments unlike last chapter. Read and review please.**

* * *

Chapter Four-The Revelations and Allies

Ash felt the strange sensation flooding his body as he concentrated on the feeling. It was warm and gave him relief. Although focusing so much made him tired quickly, Ash was starting to enjoy the strange power pulsating inside him. Now he was able to detect similar power in others-gentle and untrained. His on the other hand, was a totally different case-raging like an inferno and regal like a ruler at the same time. He could visualize it in all life forms when he closed his eyes and let his mind wander-a grayish blue in others and greenish blue in himself. His body gave off a dominating power which made even Pokémon to be wary.

Ash had noticed how different Pokémon interacted with him. They maintained a respectable distance from him when he fixed his attention on projecting the inner flames. The power made them attracted and secure towards him while still making them feel somewhat afraid of the limitless energy. Ash's own Pokémon had been fascinated with their trainer's amazing ability. Ash gauged them and all had shown pleasant results. The newest member Vulpix seemed to have a powerful energy in her, which unfortunately was untapped and dormant.

The young boy was practicing daily to hone his strange power. Whatever it was, he felt attached to the influence it had on others and felt safe while using the abilities. But now, he was curious and confused, 'Strange power, ability to understand emotions of Pokémon, command over Pokémon, able to see things without even opening eyes, ability to fight and lastly a tiring work. What the hell is this? And why am I different?'

Ash was snapped from his train of thoughts by a yip of Vulpix. She was looking intently at her new trainer. She loved him a lot for the favors he did to her by saving her life and taking her into the team. The boy took care of her and kept her safe. She would readily sacrifice her life for him. Now, she could not see him so strained in deep thoughts. She somehow wanted to get him happy and active again. She stepped onto Ash's lap as he was sitting below a tree and looked up with her huge round eyes.

The trainer smiled at the Fire type and started caressing below her chin and behind her ears earning pleased coos. He started talking to her while the others of the team were training. It was a routine for Vulpix to stop her training soon and talk with Ash. He wanted her to take things easy till she recovered fully. Ash was also helping her personally to restore her fire breathing abilities by making her eat appropriate food stuffs, covering her in sleep, making her do breathing exercises etc. She had made quite the progress in that matter as well. While caressing her, he looked at the Pokémon and spoke, "You know, before I met you, I made a new rival."

The young Pokémon stared back curiously at the boy. He smiled, "A powerful one at that. He's intelligent and is behind a group of criminals. Our rivalry isn't about battling but about capturing that Organization." Vulpix growled at which Ash smiled, "Yeah. They hurt innocent people and Pokémon alike. The guy I'm talking about is known as Jimmy. He is a Private Detective, one who helps authorities fight against or crack crimes."

Ash's newest Pokémon widened her eyes and droned lightly. Ash laughed lightly, "Yeah, I know it is risky to involve in such things. But that is the part and parcel of trying to be the best and thats why I have you guys to teach me and learn things from me. As a team, we will fight till we can and bring them to justice. That is why I want you all to be as strong as possible." His voice was firm and he was determined when he tried to make understand the Fire type his ambitions and their goals.

The Vulpix licked Ash's face lightly and got off his lap. Facing the trainer, she took a deep breath. Ash's eyes widened when he felt Vulpix's energy levels peaking. With a loud and unnerving howl, Vulpix started shining a deep red and flames flickered into existence around her body. All of Ash's Pokémon gathered around him looking in amazement at their youngest teammate. Vulpix gave out an unnatural growl and the flames were slowly absorbed into her body.

Ash slowly closed his eyes and the familiar sensation of his powers extended out to the Fire type. He flinched and recoiled when he felt the massive power level. The energy Vulpix was radiating made him afraid of her safety. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the canine in disbelief. But unlike the power he felt, her saucer like eyes still held the loving gaze. She nuzzled onto his chest slowly.

"What was that just now Vulpix?" Ash asked in awe. The canine opened her mouth and a blast of flames erupted from her maw. Ash gasped, "Flamethrower! You got your fire breathing ability back?!"

Slowpoke and Flaaffy growled at Vulpix and motioned her to go with them. She leapt from Ash's side and blasted flames at the two who quickly responded by attacking back. Ash was about to stop them but when he felt excitement in their actions, he stopped himself.

He smirked lightly when Staravia joined them and surprisingly, round stones flew from beside all of them. The whole group looked at the source of the attack and then yelped as glowing seeds came flying at them. Heracross grinned and dodged a small burst of flames and hovered into the air. Ash laughed when he saw all of his Pokémon going into a free for all battle.

* * *

Delia looked at her son in anger and sadness, "Ash, you underwent all these and didn't even tell me. Look at that scar. It is scary. How can I allow you to continue if you take such risks?"

Ash sighed, "Mom, I told you. I am safe and I have strong Pokémon. I am also training myself. I'll make sure to be out of harm's way."

The lady wiped her tears and nodded, "I know Ash. Your dad is gonna be proud of you if he knows you oppose Team Rocket."

Ash's eyes hardened at the mention of his father. He had never seen the man in his life. The only information he knew was that his father was an extremely skilled trainer and went off on a journey.

He had tried enquiring the natives of Pallet Town but he found it too hard to get answers. Prof. Oak's reactions to his queries made him feel that it was secret information, better kept hidden. This made him angry at the man who had left him and his mother at the most needed time.

Ash glared at his mother, "Don't tell me about that…." He was cut off by his mother, "Ash! Show some respect. You will when you know more."

"Then tell me Mom. Who is he? Why did he leave?" Ash didn't want to talk this over the phone but right now, he had no choice. Delia shook her head slowly, "I can't tell it my child. You have to learn it from him personally. He'll find you. I am sure."

Ash sighed, "Fine. I'll wait. After all, I have been waiting since I started asking these questions. Anyways, I have to get to the Gym now. I'll call you later. Bye."

Ash ended the talk abruptly and walked out to the main desk of the Pokémon Centre. A boy and a Chansey rushed to the Emergency Room with a stretcher. A Pidgeotto lay charred and injured heavily on the stretcher.

As Ash looked on in horror at the poor Flying type's condition, Nurse Joy came near him, "That is the condition of the Pokémon used in Vermillion Gym against Surge. He was ordered to go all out since winning against him during a short period of time will let the victors gain a ticket for S.S Anne."

"S.S Anne?" Ash frowned. The Nurse smiled, "The most luxurious cruise ship in the world right now. Due to this rare opportunity, many people challenge the gym to get the ticket."

Ash nodded slowly as Nurse Joy walked away, 'But who would use a Pidgeotto in an Electric Gym. That is outright stupid.'

As Ash walked out of the Centre, something flew beside him and slammed into the wall. He turned around in shock and saw a sharp knife intended in the wall. Ash turned around looking for the attacker but in vain. He inspected the knife and saw a small paper attached to the weapon's hilt. Pulling out the knife, the boy pocketed the item.

He unfolded the small paper and found a few words scribbled, '_Dear Ash, don't search for me since it might become dangerous to your life. Instead let me keep watch over you. I can make sure you are safe. Love._'

Ash glared at the paper and then at the area around. He found no one suspicious. On looking back at the paper, he observed a small seal at the bottom. A circle made of red paint with a small yellow lightning bolt in the centre. Ash grunted and shoved the paper and knife inside his backpack safely.

* * *

Ash stood in front of the Vermillion Gym looking at the huge building with excitement. He could feel adrenaline coursing through his body. His body flared up in response to his enthusiasm and soothed him. Steeling his nerves, Ash pushed the doors of the Gym and entered the huge dark hall. It had minimum lights and mostly due to the sparks from various Electric types.

He could see many trainers battling it out in the Gym. But he was not interested in them since he knew that they were just apprentices. He wanted to face their master, the renowned and widely feared ex-military man, a master of Electric types, one of the strongest Gym Leaders in Kanto-Lt. Surge. Ash was met by many glares from the huge and strapping trainers of the Gym. He grimaced at their stares but didn't show it on his face.

Ash walked straight to the end of the hallway and called out to two trainers who looked like they were supervising the training, "I am here to challenge Lt. Surge!" Everyone stared at him for a few moments before many of them roared into laugher.

The man who stood in front of him studied Ash from top to bottom and turned to a dark corner, "Boss, we have another one here for the emergency room."

Ash noticed a shadow move and someone sitting on a chair got up slowly. Ash stood bored but when he saw the actual size of the person, he gulped in fear. An absolutely monstrous man walked out of the shadow. He stood above seven feet and had a rough and well built body that matched his height perfectly. The man's posture screamed out his power over others. He wore dark green sleeveless jacket over a mud brown t-shirt and a dark green trouser with black gum boots. Holding his head high, the giant walked forward and then slowly looked down at Ash, "Is this the one?" His gruff voice enquired.

Taking a deep breath Ash stared at the man, "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and I challenge you for a battle."

Lt. Surge gave an eccentric smile and then nodded. Ash frowned. He had heard that the ex-military official was infamous for taunting his challengers and intimidating them making them emotionally weaker and then defeating them harshly. While Surge's body and attire made him intimidating, the man had shown a strangely polite gesture when he just nodded instead of taunting Ash.

Ash followed the leader and entered the next room which held the battlefield. Surge barked out an order at which, everyone except the two supervisors and referee fled from the room. The lights all around the field turned on. It was a plain field made of mud, boundaries and trainer boxes marked with precision.

Ash took one box while Surge walked to the other side silently and stood opposite Ash. His eyes had hardened now and he was lobbing a single Poke ball up and down in his right hand.

The referee who stood at the sidelines, raised his hands and shouted, "This battle is between the Vermillion City Gym Leader Lt. Surge and challenger Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. If the leader is defeated, challenger will be awarded with Thunder Badge and a ticket to luxury cruise ship S.S Anne. A three on three battle with no substitutions for the leader. Begin on the bell signal." He struck a small bell and both the battlers lobbed their Poke balls into the field.

Ash's trusted Heracross stomped the field on appearing and crossed his arms. Lt. Surge's Pokémon was a small yellow-orange bipedal cross between rabbit and mouse. Ash frowned, 'Is it some kinda sick Pikachu?!'

The Pokémon's tail was long and black with a star like tip. Orange pouches decorated its cheeks and its ears were huge enough to sense even light voice. The Pokémon's whiskers were small antennas. As soon as the Pokémon were released, Ash saw a brief flash of light as invisible barriers appeared around the field. He realized that they were to protect the trainers and onlookers from stray attacks.

Ash pulled out his Pokédex and scanned the opponent's Pokémon.

_Dedenne, the Antenna Pokémon. It communicates with its brethren by sending signals through the whiskers. It is a unique Electric and Fairy type._

Ash hummed and started off, "Bullet Seed Heracross." Surge seemed impressed by the opposing Bug type, "A good one there kid. Dedenne, Charge Beam."

The Electric type cheered and let out a small straight beam of electricity at Heracross who's Bullet Seed collided with the move. Heracross spread his wings and flew towards Dedenne.

"Quick, Nuzzle." Surge barked out. The stag beetle shook his horn in an attempt to hit Dedenne. The nimble opponent leapt out of the way and rubbed its head on the Bug type. Sparks flew from the powerful Fighting type's body. His body gave a red glow and Heracross punched Dedenne in its face that was hurled away from the brute force of the attack.

"Guts! Alright Heracross, get close with Aerial Ace and use Take Down." Heracross was in a state that assured the fact that he was Ash's strongest physical attacker. His high power was often useful in the wild since he could scare away many Pokémon. And currently he was showing it off again.

"You use Aerial Ace." Surge roared. He liked his Pokémon fast and hard hitting but Electric types were generally frail and he knew not to let them get hit by monsters like Heracross, especially when he was enhanced with Guts boost.

The two Pokémon clashed in the middle of the field. Heracross staggered back on being hit by the super effective move but Dedenne flew back due to the boosted power of Heracross. It was like he was in frenzy. His hits were super strong and he was unaware of his own status.

Dedenne whined from its spot. Surge sighed, "Thunderbolt." Heracross was a bit slow to react and was caught by the full brunt of the attack. He roared in anger and lunged at Dedenne. With a swift jab from the Fighting type, the opponent hit the ground unconscious.

The referee declared Dedenne unable to battle quickly. Surge recalled the Fairy type and looked at Ash, "Impressive. Very impressive. Let us see how you match this one. Let's go Rotom."

Surge's Pokémon looked a lot like a refrigerator. Its body had design that resembled doors of a refrigerator adorned by small eyes and a mouth above them. It had purple arms on both sides. The Pokémon was levitating in the air. It rose high into the air showing off its orange and purple body. Its eyes were glaring at Heracross.

Ash gulped. He had learned about Rotom and its different forms. It was very rare and quite tricky to battle. Rotom was basically an Electric/Ghost Pokémon but it was known for the ability to switch its secondary typing into Water, Fire, Grass, Ice or Flying. And now, this one had Ice typing. To see that Lt. Surge had one was probably one reason for why he was very tough to beat.

'It won't be very easy but fortunately Heracross has his attacks boosted and also a type advantage.' Ash thought, "Alright Heracross, start off with Night Slash."

Surge raised his eyebrows, "Night Slash? You don't stop impressing me kid. Rotom, block it with Astonish."

Heracross sluggishly flew at Rotom. The small protrusions on his arms were glowing pitch black. With a grunt, he slashed at Rotom who growled and head butted back. Both the Pokémon grunted in pain and backed off. Rotom had the Ice typing but deep down, it was a Ghost type in its basic form. As such, it had a slight weakness to Dark moves. Ash knew this and had utilized it for his advantage.

He smirked, "Now Brick Break." Heracross's arm glowed and he swung at Rotom but the Electric type quickly slipped into the ground avoiding the attack completely. Ash gasped when he saw Rotom disappearing into the ground. Surge laughed loudly, "That's why Ghosts are dangerous. Surface and use Blizzard. Then use Thunderbolt."

Rotom grinned as it appeared behind Heracross. Opening its mouth, the strange Pokémon unleashed a vicious hailstorm. Heracross grunted in pain as the attack froze his wings. Rotom growled menacingly and sparked. The smell of ozone spread in the air as wicked bolts of electricity slammed into the helpless Heracross. As the attack ceased, Ash saw his Bug type's charred exoskeleton.

Ash sighed and recalled his Fighting type, "Thank you Heracross. You beat Dedenne despite weakness and gave Rotom a good fight."

The referee raised his hands, "Heracross is unable to battle. Rotom wins. Challenger, choose your next Pokémon."

Ash took out his next Poke ball and stared at it intently. His latest Pokémon had amazed him with her immense desire to become stronger and had showed incredible improvement in training. Ash was sure that with proper care and training, she would eventually be a force to be reckoned with.

With a smile, Ash chucked the Poke ball into the field. From the confinement of the sphere, Vulpix appeared and howled in an eerie manner. Even Ash shuddered from the voice. The Fire type had been warned about the upcoming battle and she was prepared.

As soon as the referee gave the signal, Surge shouted, "Cool down that fiery dog with Blizzard." Rotom created another Blizzard. Vulpix's body started to freeze slowly. Ash shouted, "Vulpix, use Flame Burst."

Vulpix howled again and her body flared up immediately. She stamped her front legs on the ground making flames fly to all four sides. The frost encasing her body parts immediately waned away.

Surge grunted from the intense heat released at once, "Use Thunderbolt. Try to finish it quickly. That Vulpix is dangerous." The second time, Rotom attacked with its powerful move but immediately, a torrent of flames countered the volts.

Ash grinned. Vulpix was living upto his expectations. She was really strong when her powers had been tapped. Rotom's attack was pushed back and the flames washed over it. The part Ice type got up back soon but its body was burnt and weak. Seeing the opportunity, Ash shouted, "Finish it with Hex."

Hex was a weird Ghost type move. It capitalized on the opponent's status. Any Pokémon affected by poison, burn or paralysis would take double damage from the move. It let the user to keep up offensive pressure over the opponent. Ash had been surprised to know that Vulpix could naturally learn such a rare move.

Vulpix growled and a mass of blackish purple was hurled at the opposing ghost from her body. The attack hit accurately and Rotom immediately fell down knocked out. The earlier attacks seemed to have cost Rotom a lot of health.

The referee looked impressed by Ash's performance. "Rotom is unable to battle. Vulpix wins. Leader, choose your final Pokémon." He didn't hide the excitement from his voice.

Ash looked in pride at Vulpix but grimaced at what he saw. She was breathing heavily and struggling to move. 'Damn! She gets tired quickly. Need to work on the stamina part.'

Lt. Surge recalled his Rotom and looked at Ash, "Really? This isn't something that happens often. I am not generally pushed so far as to rely on a final Pokémon. You are doing good. But that ends here. Go Raichu!" He hurled a last Poke ball and came out the most renowned Pokémon of his roster.

Raichu was a bipedal mouse with yellow-orange body, white underside, blackish brown tipped ears, paws and legs. Its cheeks had electric pouches of a pale yellow color. It swished its long lightning tipped tail and growled menacingly.

Surge and Raichu were a great team since they met. They were feared and respected by everyone. Raichu was his starter and easily one of his best Pokémon. He was known for being brutal just like Surge. Raichu growled in excitement and gave a mock salute to Surge who saluted back to the Mouse Pokémon.

Ash recollected what he had learnt, 'Pikachu's evolution induced by a Thunderstone. Known for high speed and brute power. Aggressive and proud. Frail defensively. Dangerous if touched.'

Ash didn't need to be told twice to know that Raichu was a badass. He had learnt a lot about the species and especially the one he was facing. He closed his eyes and tried probing at the Electric type with his mind. He got the exact response he had expected. The Pokémon realized the foreign presence near him and sparkled wildly making Ash stop his trial.

Ash had been practicing this daily and trying on various Pokémon. He was able to make them feel uneasy. But it felt nice to feel their minds although he could not read them. Right now, Raichu had reacted as expected and ward him off. Ash smiled and nodded at Vulpix, "Flamethrower."

Raichu didn't even need a command. He simply blasted back the whole flames with a huge Thunderbolt. Vulpix yelped and jumped aside just in time to avoid the hit. Ash grit his teeth, "Damn. It has too much power. We need to try and find some weakness. Vulpix, don't exert too much power. Close in on with Quick Attack."

Vulpix nodded and dashed forward. Surge grinned, "Don't waste time Raichu. Finish it off with a single hit. Volt Tackle." The mouse got on all fours and started running towards the opponent. Its body slowly got covered with sparks that acted like armor. Ash squinted from the light and he could see only an outline of Raichu's body inside the intense covering of static. He knew he had to somehow make sure Vulpix would not get hit.

Suddenly, it dawned and he grinned, "Dodge with Feint Attack."

Just a second before Raichu rammed into Vulpix, a dark aura covered her and she disappeared. Raichu skidded into a stop and looked around in confusion. Ash smiled, "Will-o-wisp as you come out."

Three strange blue orbs of flames appeared in the air and circled around Raichu who tried to ward them off with his tail. But the flames simply swerved around and then at last collided with him. Raichu cried in pain and anger as his body was engulfed in a blue flame. He staggered back in agony.

Surge looked worried, "Raichu. Are you alright?!" Vulpix who was not seen suddenly flickered into existence behind Raichu and spat a huge torrent of fire onto his back. Raichu roared as he was tortured by the burns and the flames. Vulpix howled and released a cone of fire which started spiraling around Raichu, trapping him effectively. Vulpix growled happily and then fainted from the exhaustion.

Ash sighed and recalled Vulpix, "Thanks a lot my dear. You did an excellent job by burning Raichu and defeating Rotom. I'll make sure you are all better in our next battle." He put away the Poke ball and grabbed his last as the referee announced Vulpix unable to battle.

He gripped his first ever Poke ball in his hand and looked at Surge. The man was calm again and stood with his head raised. Ash could see Raichu trapped in the flames but Surge seemed to know what he was doing and did not fret. Inhaling sharply, Ash summoned his starter.

He noticed Surge's eyes widening in surprise and a smile on his face after seeing Flaaffy. Ash shrugged it off and looked at Flaaffy who was moving slowly left to right, probably to get his nerves ready for the upcoming clash. Surge turned towards Raichu, "Snap it with Discharge. Then give a nice Thunderbolt. Let that baby know what a real Electric type is like."

Ash was stunned when he saw an immense flash inside the Fire spin Vulpix had created earlier. The flames dissipated courtesy the strange vortex of electricity Raichu had released. Within moments, another bolt of electricity flew from the mouse. Ash smiled, he had prepared specially for this kind of battle. He roared, "Inflate."

A few blue sparks flew from Flaaffy's wool and the covering substance inflated as it absorbed air. Raichu's Thunderbolt hit the inflated wool and got absorbed into it. Ash grinned, "Electro Ball." It was a technique he came up with since Flaaffy could absorb electricity from air. He had tried it on a local trainer and succeeded.

Flaaffy casually hurled a small orb of yellow at Raichu who grunted in irritation on being hit. Surge looked on in awe. He had never seen such a phenomenon. A smaller and comparatively weaker Pokémon absorbing Raichu's Thunderbolt so casually was almost impossible. Yet this small kid was manhandling the famed Electric types of Vermillion Gym so easily. Moreover, Raichu was being weakened by the burn steadily.

"Thunderbolt. Full power." Surge roared. Raichu yelled ignoring the pain from burn and unleashed a violent blast of thunder. Ash narrowed his eyes and shouted, "Channel!" Flaaffy's tail glowed in the familiar process of Iron Tail. He slammed the tail into the ground and balanced on it. The high voltage attack simply washed over him and then made way into the ground through his tail.

As the attack stopped, Surge and Raichu gasped. Surge looked at Ash in bewilderment, "How the hell do you train your Pokémon kid?" Ash simply grinned back. The Gym Leader shrugged, "Anyways, we'll try other moves. Use Iron Tail."

Raichu closed in on Flaaffy in a moment and swiped his tail. Ash shouted, "Agility around him. Then use Iron Tail on his legs." Flaaffy's back was struck by the shining tail but he quickly vanished in a blur appearing behind Raichu. He swiftly slammed his tail hard on the opponent's legs who tripped and fell down. Surge grit his teeth, "Raichu, Body Slam."

The mouse growled and leapt at Flaaffy. Ash tried to make him dodge but Raichu was quick and landed on Flaffy with all his weight. The starter cried in pain as Raichu's weight and momentum was combined to induce maximum pain in him. Ash grimaced, "Flaaffy, use your Thunderbolt."

Flaaffy repeated the move used so many times in the gym so far but this time in blue color and Raichu being in contact with the user, got hit at full force. He grunted in pain and backed off. But Surge was not ready to give up, "Volt Tackle."

Once again, Raichu executed the extremely powerful attack and this time, it hit. Flaaffy was hurled back by the brutal force behind the move. Ash didn't want to be told to know that it was a knockout. But before anyone could react, flames engulfed Raichu and he fell down with swirls in his eyes.

* * *

Surge walked with Ash to the centre through the busy road. The people on the streets made way for the giant and his young accomplice. They looked at Ash in awe and respect. The man had given Ash a badge and a ticket for the cruise ship.

"So what do you aim to be Ash?" Surge enquired in his gruff voice, "You are quite talented in battling. You must aim high early on and use your skills."

Ash smiled. He was starting to like the Electric type trainer. Although rough in appearance and attitude, he was still kind and honest. The boy nodded and took a deep breath, "I aim to be a Pokémon Master!"

This statement caused the leader to snap up his head and look at Ash in surprise. Ash frowned, "Is something wrong Lt?"

Surge smiled and shook his head, "Just Surge please. You are an accomplice now. And I have no problem. Instead, I have something to tell you." By the time he completed, they had reached the centre. The Nurse gasped on seeing the gym leader, "Wow its Surge! You were really beaten by someone? So that's the first ticket you issue huh?"

The man laughed lightly and then clapped Ash on his shoulder, "This kid gave me an awesome battle. Although it was close, I still lost. And I'm a trainer Holly. I should lose once in a while."

The nurse smiled kindly and took the two trainers' Poke balls. Ash and Surge walked over to the benches and sat down. Ash released his Staravia and Slowpoke. Staravia hovered near Ash and eyed Surge warily. Slowpoke stared at the man for a few moments before nodding his head in approval and then slumped on the ground.

Ash pet Staravia on her head and motioned her to perch on the bench. She had grown too large for him to carry her on his shoulder. Ash smiled, "Don't worry. Surge here is a friend. Be nice." The bird in turn slowly looked at the unnaturally built man and dipped her head for a moment. Surge laughed, "I like her. Suspicious of anyone eh? Don't worry girl. Keep that attitude and behavior. The same was my case. That kind of mindset and my Pokémon saved me in the war."

Ash perked up, "War? What war?" Surge seemed hesitant but then whispered, "I'll explain before you leave. That is what you must learn here."

* * *

Surge stopped near the ocean, "Do you see this ocean Ash? So calm and serene yet vast in proportion and immensely powerful. This is how your aim is. The Vermillion City you see today is the result of such an influential person's alliance. He helped me clear the city of all malice and restore peace. I was just out of military and chosen as the leader here. He was the one who showed me what real life must be."

Ash frowned, "Who is 'he'?"

"Your goal. The Master. A great friend to the good and the worst nightmare to evil." Surge's eyes gleamed in excitement as he talked about the legendary man who had helped him, "He is the ideal model for any aspiring champion. You need to be like him to achieve the goal."

Ash looked in awe, "You…You know Master Red? Temme Surge. Where is he?"

The gym leader shook his head, "I'm sorry Ash. I am bound to a promise I made. He's my friend and I can't betray my word to him. It will be like killing myself."

Ash sighed, 'It is no use. He has closed every way of finding him.' Surge saw the sad look on Ash's face and mumbled, "He'll come looking for you. I know it Ash. You are the ally he mentioned. You have the potential to be that ally."

"Tell me, how do I be like him? Help me Surge." Ash pleaded. The Electric trainer smirked at the boy, "Use your gifts. Majorly, the powerful brain you crafted those weird strategies in. Your tactics are brilliant and those will help you grow fast. But once you reach a limit, you'll slow down. Then, you'll have to make someone teach you. At that time, he will come. I am sure."

"So I must also focus on brute power like you do?" Ash raised an eyebrow. The lieutenant smirked, "Exactly. That was what Red told me at that time. He saved my life and helped me be stronger. In return, I had to help in eliminating the scum."

Ash gasped, "You mean, the war you mentioned was against Team Rocket?!"

Surge nodded, "Yeah. And this time, they are up again. We are keeping tabs on them and the ones who oppose them. We have chosen a few of you as our primary allies to fulfill Red's prophecy. We'll be helping you whenever necessary."

Ash growled in frustration, "And who might 'we' be here?"

Surge laughed, "Chill kid. You don't need to get irritated. You will know soon. With your tendency of attracting trouble, you will meet many of us again. But only for you to know right now, 'we' are the soldiers of Red. Members of a secretive clan he created. We are known as G-Men!

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